Bryan Stevenson reveals the horror truth of mass incarceration, which has been viewed as the modern day Jim Crow, through his memoir Just Mercy. For a majority of the book, Stevenson elaborates on the case of Walter Mcmillian, a black male, who took pride in his work as a successful entrepreneur with his lumber business. He earned the respect and admiration of strangers; but, was seen as “pleasant, respectful, generous, and accommodating” by those who knew him well and appreciated his presence (pg. 25). Although, he did have his flaws, as he was known to frequently cheat his wife, and his current mistress at the time was white, Karen Kelly― which, unfortunately, this makes him a perfect target for a false accusation. On June 7, 1987, Walter was …show more content…
He was able to present new evidence; this includes proof of Ralph Meyer’s false witness testimony, and the mechanic who worked on Walter’s car. Stevenson ended up winning Walter’s freedom. After six years of being on death row, Walter was released. He was overjoyed. Unfortunately, in the time between his release and his death, Walter got into an accident while working, reducing his ability to run his lumber business. To compensate for this, he utilizes the land he had, and opened a business for car scraps― which costed him more than ever before. Later, Walter was put into a care facility, and was diagnosed with trauma-induced dementia. He passed away on September 11, 2013, believing that he was back on death row. In between the narrative of Walter’s case, Stevenson revealed other death row cases, ranging from actual people who were the elderly, the youth, and the disabled; examples include Joe Sullivan, Marsha Colbey, and a myriad of others. He then leaves us with this hope, this urge to change the world, and to be merciful. Truly, Stevenson’s work opened up my eyes, to a new vision for myself, and hopefully, for
Melton McLaurin’s book Celia, A Slave is the account of the trial, conviction, and execution of a female slave for the murder of her “master” Robert Newsom in 1855. The author uses evidence compiled through studying documents from Callaway County, Missouri and the surrounding area during the middle of the Nineteenth Century. Although much of what can be determine about this event is merely speculation, McLaurin proposes arguments for the different motives that contribute to the way in which many of the events unfold. Now throughout the book the “main characters”, being Celia, her lawyer Jameson, and the judge William Hall, are all faced with moral decisions that affect the lives of two different people.
After enduring a mortal wound, Walter drives to the Pacific All-Risk insurance agency and is escorted upstairs by the doorkeeper. Walter staggers to his office, lights up a cigarette and begins to relay a message to Keyes. He professes a murderous conspiracy while clutching the dictaphone: “I kille...
There were many innocent people that were punished for crimes they did not commit because they could not afford adequate counsel. Being poor and black can become a life or death situation. I believe that both books makes very valid points when it comes to mass incarceration and racial biases. The injustices have become so engrained in the system that many are blind to what is actually going on. More and more black men are becoming incarcerated and this is not because more blacks commit crime, so why then are so many being institutionalized? I believe it is to try to regain that power that was lost from the abolishment of slavery. The New Jim Crow highlighted the creation of the new racial caste system by revealing that the conception of this permanent segregation was implanted well before the Civil Rights Movement ended (Stevenson, 2014). While Just Mercy pinpoints the aftermath of a preconceived idea. It showed that America operated off of fear and anger, rather than truth and
Despite the star witness recanting his story completely and with new evidence proving beyond doubt that Walter could not have been at the scene of the crime. Despite overwhelmingly compelling evidence, the case still gets dropped several more times, all the while, Stevenson is receiving bomb and other types of death threats. It strikes me that this is all taking place in Monroe County, Alabama. “To Kill A Mockingbird” was written there, and everyone acts like the book is their greatest treasure and proof of their stance on racial equality. The public proves to be completely fruitless when a very parallel story actually happens in their town. It is as if they took all the memorabilia throughout the county, gathered it up and burned it in resounding, united rage against this innocent man due only to his
Walter has an interesting turn of events towards the end of the book. He is forced to abandon his quest to the North Pole, he is faced with the monster and must hear the monster's plans for self-destruction, he has to watch idly as his new friend, Victor, passes from this world. He has such noble dreams and aspirations, but they are all brought to a halt because of his chance meeting with Frankenstein. Or, was his expedition doom from the start because of the nature of wanting to do what no other man had done? Was it his ambition that led him to untimely failure? The evidence from the text proves that possibly he was never meant to surpass his peers and obtain the glory that he pursued.
Walter’s innocence, until one day he is finally released from death row. Mr. Stevenson’s book
During the time when Walter stareded gong to high schoolm those years were hard for him, for the fact that he suffered from a speech impediment. But that minor problem didn't stop him from writing. In high school he was a good student and could read well but he had a behavioral problem. In school he had a very severe speech difficulty, and he said he arrived at
Mass incarceration in the United States has been a very prominent and distinct feature of our criminal justice system. The rates of which this system imprisons is very unequal when compared to other countries in the world, as well as when compared to other races within the United States itself. Mass incarceration does alter the lives of those who are within its prison system, and also those who are related to those individuals whether it be through blood or bond. These effects can extend to disrupting one’s life to the point where they can’t vote, go to school, hold a job, or deprive them of other rights, and affect others whereby they may be more likely to experience negative life events, be deprived of resources, and/or be more
This book Native Son Mr. Wright was inspired with his own surrounding living in the South Side of Chicago in the 1930s and living into a very poor and despair place where Negros had no one to defend them or help them. Mr. Wright was mostly encouraged by one of the Chicago News Paper of how a young Negro murdered a white a white girl with a brick. He then made it possible to place himself to kill someone and let their destiny come true. This story was a very eye opening because as we speak there is injustice still happening today, there are many people suffering for a murdered they did not commit and most of these people might be black or any ethnicity or race being blamed for a crime.
As one grows older, certain trends begin to appear that are difficult not to notice. Naivety begins to fade and the harsh realities people are faced with every day present themselves. These realities shape how people perceive and treat others. A certain theme, or rather lack of theme, that is extremely pertinent in today’s society is the notion of humanity. Humanity is defined, by Merriam-Webster, as the quality or state of being humane or having a compassionate disposition. Just Mercy, by Bryan Stevenson, is a book that perfectly embodies the theme of humanity. In this book, the reader follows the author throughout his journey from an idealistic, young lawyer to a revered attorney in his quest for justice for those deemed unfavorable by our
Bryan Stevenson states that in the U.S one out of three black men are either in prison or on probation/parole. Within the criminal justice system, it has been brought up that there is still racial and wealth inequality. Stevenson argues that one is likely to be treated better if they are rich and guilty opposed to being poor and innocent. Identity becomes a factor in this controversial issue when it is clear that no one is fighting for the equality. Stevenson brings up the point of the issue not being personal. If the problem is not personal, then it’s not the problem of the community. However, he argues that if no one will address problem, then the problem will never get solved. Similarly, Bryan Stevenson proclaims that within the nation, identity is based solely on how the poor is treated. People in poverty have a lack of opportunity, and they are often blamed and mistreated for this unfortunate way of life. Stevenson goes on to say that “the opposite of poverty is not wealth, it is justice.” What he means by this statement is that poverty is unjust. The fact that one is less fortunate the most should never be the reason to be mistreated. Recognizing that poverty is injustice is a positive way of improving one’s identity because may be the start of dealing with one of the nation’s many
Overcrowding of prisons due to mass incarceration is among one of the biggest problems in America, mass incarceration has ruined many families and lives over the years.America has the highest prison population rate , over the past forty years from 1984 until 2014 that number has grown by four hundred percent .America has four percent of the world population ,but twenty-five percent of the world population of incarcerated people Forty one percent of American juveniles have been or going to be arrested before the age of 23. America has been experimenting with incarceration as a way of showing that they are tough on crime but it actually it just show that they are tough on criminals. imprisonment was put in place to punish, criminals, protect society and rehabilitate criminals for their return into the society .
By coming into the country, other races are denied of superiority and are exposed to an already “racialized society”. (pp.78) Oppression also comes into place with hierarchy, such as the “Bonds of Sisterhood” by Romero that portrays a difference between African American servants and housewives. It sets up an inequality between both women, showing inferiority over African American woman. One last reading that has emerged and captivated attention is Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson. Stevenson expresses oppression in one of his own narratives when he was discriminated by two S.W.A.T officers. He describes his experience terrifying yet shocking since he had done nothing wrong. He was accused of a burglary based on the color of his skin because he lived in a white neighborhood. Not only that, but he was also investigated and searched which violated his rights. This unlawful act portrayed the ignorances for complex, multiple, and cross cutting relationships because Stevenson was an educated lawyer; yet, was seen different by the two officers in his own residence. Overall, Stevenson’s book has captured attention since it has given an experience of what he went
According to the Oxford Index, “whether called mass incarceration, mass imprisonment, the prison boom, or hyper incarceration, this phenomenon refers to the current American experiment in incarceration, which is defined by comparatively and historically extreme rates of imprisonment and by the concentration of imprisonment among young, African American men living in neighborhoods of concentrated disadvantage.” It should be noted that there is much ambiguity in the scholarly definition of the newly controversial social welfare issue as well as a specific determination in regards to the causes and consequences to American society. While some pro arguments cry act as a crime prevention technique, especially in the scope of the “war on drugs’.
Walker brought most of the horrific and even sickening scenes of the book to life, with the help and influence of society in history. One of the greatest influences to have an effect on Walker's style of writing and especially The Color Purple, were instances from slavery and prejudice. The whites owned and empowered America during the time of slavery. They had no respect for any other race, which they thought of as substandard. As Lean'tin Bracks stated, blacks were considered to be racially inferior, and they were used for the exploitation of the white culture. The whites used the black people as animals, and made them do their every bidding. Blacks and whites were separated form each other and this segregation of the two races barred blacks from legal and economic access, and they were put to punishment by the white culture. Interaction between the two races rarely occurred other than specific affairs or whites intruding on blacks. There were no penalties to pay by whites, therefore intrusions were common, and they took advantage of the African-Americans. The intrusions varied from breaking and entering to rape and murder for no apparent reason (84). Walker used this basis of racism to grip the reader and take them through a story of a women, who survives physical, verbal, and emotional abuse, everyday.