Review: Just Mercy By Bryan Stevenson

Owen coper

English II Honors

Copeland, Lisa

3/24/23

In the book “Just Mercy,” by Bryan Stevenson, the author (Stevenson) realizes the degree of corruption and fraud in the justice system and sets out to try and change it. He tries to liberate a man named Walter from his wrongful imprisonment after six years

Stevenson’s understanding of justice is propelled by Herbert, a former United States soldier who came back from the Vietnam War. Herbert’s words help Stevenson realize that the world, along with the justice system, is unjust and corrupt. In the novel, on page 70, Stevenson writes, “Herbert sighed. ‘More people have asked me what they can do to help me in the last fourteen hours of my life than ever asked me in the years when I

He now understands that the idea of justice is not set in stone and can differentiate from person to person. On page 24, Stevenson states, “interracial relationships were legally prohibited by ‘anti-miscegenation statues’ (the word miscegenation came into use in the 1860s, when supporters of slavery coined the term to promote their fear of interracial sex and marriage and the race missing that would result if slavery was abolished). For over a century, many Southern law Enforcment officials saw it as part of their duty to punish black men who had been intimate with ‘their’ white women.” Both sides, supporting and opposing interracial marriage, believed that they were fighting for justice. This shows how the definition of justice can vary due to a difference in morals and

Many of Walter’s family members were waiting to congratulate him on finally being free and being served justice. On page 193, Stevenson writes, “State, local, and national media outlets were crowded outside the courthouse when I arrived the next morning. Dozens of Walter’s family members and friends from the community were there to greet him when he came out. They had made signs and banners, which surprised me. They were such simple gestures, but I found myself deeply moved. The signs gave a silent voice to the crowd: ‘Welcome Home Johnny D,’ ‘God Never Fails,’ ‘Free at Last, Thank God Almighty, We Are Free at Last.’” Also, on page 194, Walter continues, “’This is a really happy day for me. Nothing can really spoil getting your freedom back.” This shows Stevenson’s success at trying to liberate Walter and the elated effect it had on