Just Mercy: A story of Justice and Redemption By Bryan Stevenson

Bryan Stevenson Website http://bryanstevenson.com/ https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/

Secure the space Whatever you decide to use in your process of introductions, be sure to ask about pronoun usage. Collaboratively determine your rules of engagement. It is extremely important that the FOG lead the discussion of this text. The SOGs can model responses to questions posed by the FOG that demonstrate a heightened sense of student engagement, but the FOG MUST take the lead for this text discussion. Be sensitive to who is in the room though don’t marginalize and isolate. Good intentions can still do great harm. Keep your discussion as close to the text as possible and discuss your reading process. How do you mark passages of significance? Do you read through each chapter more than once? What do you do when you read a word of which you are not familiar? Do you write notes in the back of the text?

Inclusive Language Please do your best to use inclusive language in all work for this course. We (Butler faculty) are committed to creating a campus environment in which everyone’s dignity is respected. In neither written nor spoken language do we discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, class, religious affiliation or non-affiliation, age, parental or marital status, veteran status, national or ethnic origin, legal status, political beliefs or physical or mental status. As educators, we are dedicated to fostering an empathetic, compassionate and socially responsible campus community. Inclusivity on campus is nothing new to Butler. Named for its founder, abolitionist and social justice activist Ovid Butler, the university was, in 1855, the first in Indiana and third in the U.S. to admit women. Furthermore, Butler’s founding charter called for a “non-sectarian institution free from the taint of slavery.” These many years later Butler faculty still take these mandates seriously. As President Danko declared in an all-campus e-mail in December 2013, “we should recognize that inclusive language is encouraged and supported at Butler University, at many other institutions of higher education, and in many disciplines. Inclusive dialogue helps prepare our students to interact with others professionally and fairly in an increasingly diverse America. And importantly, it creates a respectful environment for all people…Furthermore, I know I can expect the highest level of civility and respect from each of us in accordance with our University’s values.”

A few additional guiding questions and points from the text Why this text? What is happening in our society that makes reading this text a timely endeavor? What did you learn about Stevenson’s character? What don’t you know about him just from reading this text? What did you learn about the criminal justice system, generally?

More points for discussion What do the numbers, the statistics tell us? Why is data important? What is the significance of the personal narrative in drawing attention to injustice? What should happen to the wrongfully convicted? Stevenson suggests that there is a lack of restoration for those who are wrongfully convicted, what are your thoughts? What are your thoughts about our justice system?

Two key passages P. 289 - “I do what I do because I am broken too. My years of struggling against inequality, abusive power, poverty, oppression, and injustice had finally revealed something to me about myself.” P. 294 – “The power of just mercy is that it belongs to the undeserving. It’s when mercy is least expected that it’s most potent – strong enough to break the cycle of victimization and victimhood, retribution and suffering.”