By Bryan Stevenson. Scribe Publications 2015. Reviewed by Pat Hick 

This true story of justice and redemption echoes well in this Year of Mercy. It is a very powerful story about the potential for mercy to redeem us. Author Bryan Stevenson, an African American lawyer, founded the Equal Justice Initiative which was a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need. These included poor people, the wrongly condemned and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of the American justice system.

One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillan, a young man who was sentenced to die for a murder he insisted he had not committed. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination and legal brinkmanship. At the same time it transformed forever his understanding of mercy and justice.

Bryan also addressed the age-old issues of deep-seated racial tensions in many parts of America. His deep compassion and courage arise from his refusal to sit quietly and countenance the horrors of unjust convictions — particularly those leading to incarceration on death row.

I found this book to be written with compassion and humility. It inspired me, upset me and yet left me hopeful. I was hopeful that evil can be overcome and a difference can be made. And perhaps I need to look more deeply at my own judgemental attitudes towards “the other”.

I found this quote from the book inspiring: 

“The power of 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 victimisation and victimhood, retribution and suffering. It has the power to heal the psychic harm and injuries that lead to aggression and violence, abuse of power and incarceration.”

I recommend this book to all people of conscience who care passionately about mercy and justice.

Published in Tui Motu Magazine. Issue 208, Sept 2016.