Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

Listening, Watching, Reading: Suggestions from the Justice and Charity Committee

In an effort to continue highlighting the many resources for learning more about social justice and applying Catholic social teaching to our everyday interactions, this new blog feature will provide regular reviews of podcasts, movies, and books for those interested in learning more about social justice and Catholic social teaching. Provided by the Justice and Charity Committee members, these reviews will briefly describe context for the material and provide a summary of the work. These reviews represent the personal opinions of the writers and are not intended to be a formal endorsement or recommendation from Our Lady of Lourdes.


Just Mercy, by Bryan Stevenson   
Reviewed by Julie Ditter

We are all more than the worst thing we’ve ever done.

Bryan Stevenson is a civil rights defense attorney and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative. He has dedicated his life advocating for death row inmates who have been wrongly condemned, and narrates his most passionate stories in his book Just Mercy. Stevenson’s purpose in Just Mercy is to highlight the humanity of prisoners, reminding us that every prisoner has a story, and often a heart-breaking one. He seeks to expose the grave injustices in our United States justice system and how our court systems unfairly treat minority and marginalized populations. Stevenson’s writing forces his readers to consider the ethics of the death penalty and how they can challenge unfair and unjust systems. Stevenson’s foundational belief is that, “The true measure of our character is how we treat the poor, the disfavored, the accused, the incarcerated, and the condemned.” In Just Mercy, Stevenson uses this foundational belief to bring up several difficult but necessary points for consideration. Is the death penalty just? Is it humane? Does our justice system reflect our belief that every life has dignity? What does it mean to be pro-life? Why does our country have the highest rates of incarceration in the world? Why are our prisons filled with a higher proportion of people who are minorities, in poverty, suffer from mental illness, dyslexia, addictions, or who have endured childhood trauma and abuse? Why are we the only country in the world to sentence children to life imprisonment without parole, when we know from science that brains are still developing through adolescence? 

Just Mercy is an expression of authentic Catholic social teaching through its emphasis on dignity, solidarity, preferential treatment for the poor, and rights and responsibilities of citizens. It is a recommended read for anyone interested in understanding the systems and structures that lead to unjust incarceration, or anyone interested in a passionate but heart wrenching story of racial injustice. In addition, Stevenson just released a new book, I Know This to Be True, a collection of stories of extraordinary figures from diverse backgrounds answering similar questions posed in Just Mercy, as well as sharing their compelling stories, guiding ideas, and insightful wisdom. The movie Just Mercy is also highly recommended.