Deep breath.
I'm not political. I actually go out of my way to avoid discussions about it--not because I don't want to be educated about it, but because I hate the inevitable disagreements and judgments that result from them. I hate getting angry about it.
This book made me angry. This book made me political. This book needs to be read by everyone in this country.
It's about the author, Bryan, who is battling the corrupt justice system in the United States. He fights against death row prisoners, juvenile life sentences, and more absolutely unreasonable punishments against people who do not deserve it. The main heart of the story follows Walter McMillian, who was wrongly accused of murdering a teenage girl, and was immediately sentenced to capital punishment. It is gut-wrenching. Every other chapter, however, is another story of a victim who either was framed or panicked and did the wrong thing, etc.
I was forced to read this book for work, but I am so happy that I did. Stevenson does a very good job of not being political himself, I just felt myself thinking again and again about politics while reading. He encourages us to be compassionate, to be loving, and to see someone not only as a murderer, or a felon, but a human being who makes mistakes.
It's powerful. You need to read it.
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