Bryan Stevenson's Narrative Of Racial Injustice

Bryan Stevenson’s novel had captivated me from the very beginning, so when I heard he was coming to NIU to speak, I was more than excited to attend the speaking engagement. And just like his novel had captivated me, his words captivated me, but his words did something that the novel didn’t, they sent an even bigger shiver down my spine. Reading the words is one thing, but hearing them being spoken is another experience, one that when I reflect on, I will be proud that I went to and even got my novel signed. Once everyone finished applauding, after a good several minutes, Bryan Stevenson thanked the audience and begin to speak. Much of what Stevenson talked about I had already heard, whether from the TED talk we watched in class or from the
He talked about how we truly won’t be free until we change the narrative. He spoke about how we must do what is uncomfortable and inconvenient to us to create change, to change this narrative of social and racial injustice that we see in America. This narrative, unfortunately, will follow many even with the degree or the job they have achieved. He then said something that struck me, “Slavery didn’t end, it just evolved,” something we all know to be true, but are too afraid to admit. This slavery has evolved to domestic terrorism, that has long existed, against African Americans. He also mentioned that the opposite of poverty isn’t wealth like everyone thinks it is, it is rather justice and that “each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve done,” something that justice requires us to see, justice requires us to see the other side of the argument instead of tossing it aside for someone else and that hopelessness is the opposite of justice, Bryan Stevenson’s work has inspired many including myself, but his words shook my inner core, shook me to be hopeful and to do what is uncomfortable and inconvenient in order to make the world a better safer place for not only this generation, but for the coming