In the book Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson, Bryan, who is a lawyer, takes us through his life in Alabama and how he helps defend innocent, poor men in the arm of death who have been unjustly condemned. In any case, we see how a good portion of the convicted men were chosen specifically because of their race and vulnerability. Poverty is a key ingredient of vulnerability in Just Mercy and is also a major issue for African Americans in the South during this time. The main theme of this book, according to Bryan Stevenson, is that “The opposite of poverty is not wealth; the opposite of poverty is justice”. This statement means that black people are treated so cruelly that not even all the money in the world could surpass the satisfaction they would receive for having freedom and fairness. This is easily demonstrated right from the start of Just Mercy through racial profiling, poverty, and police brutality/mistreatment. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Racial profiling refers to the discriminatory practice by law enforcement of targeting individuals suspected of crime based on the individual's race, ethnicity, or religion. Although local officials in Alabama did not discriminate against religion, they did discriminate against ethnicity and race. Being black predominantly meant that you were dangerous and a threat to society. For example, Walter McMillian was an African American man accused by Ralph Myers of killing Ronda Morrison. Walter's entire family knew that he couldn't have killed her because he was a very hard-working man and they had evidence that he was at a fish fry with them while the murder occurred. The only evidence the police had on Walter was that “he was an African American man involved in an adulterous interracial relationship, which meant he was reckless and possibly dangerous” (p. 34). Just being black and having an interracial relationship was enough evidence to believe Ralph Myer's false story and convict Mr. McMillian, which is not right. Another example of racial profiling in the book involves the author, Bryan Stevenson, in his early twenties. One night Bryan was sitting in his car until a SWAT car came racing down the street and stopped right in front of him. The police looked at him suspiciously, so Bryan got out of the car very scared and was trying to go home until they threatened him: "Move and I'll blow your head off!" (Page 40). As you can see, these police officers believed Bryan was threatening and dangerous based on his race alone. Afterwards, they illegally searched his car and unfortunately found no evidence to take him back to prison. Bryan was later let go, but was very moved by the incident and now had a better understanding of what poor and people of color in Alabama struggled with. Both of these events show how difficult it is for African Americans to adapt to society and why racial profiling affects their daily lives. Black people living in poverty cannot go out without anyone thinking they are dangerous or threatening, which is why they would much rather have a feeling of freedom and equal representation than monetary satisfaction. Poverty is another major struggle that people in Alabama have to live with. . The key theme of Just Mercy is poverty and it is shown in every case that Bryan has to defend. Most blacks, and even some whites, living in the South are forced to live on the streets or even avoid adequate hospital care because they lackenough money to afford them. There are occasions when mothers cannot afford prenatal care and try to deliver their babies, which is not safe. For example, Marsha Colby lived in a poor rural town in Alabama with her husband Glen Colby, where they were struggling financially. They lived in a crowded trailer with their six children and knew they were at risk when they heard warnings that Hurricane Ivan would hit. After the hurricane damage, Marsha found herself pregnant. One of the problems was that “she knew that a pregnancy at her age was very risky, but she couldn't afford a doctor. He had no money saved" (p. 229). Marsha knew what to expect from her previous births, so she thought she'd make the best of it. She didn't feel well for a couple of days, so she sat in a tub of hot water thinking it would help. Suddenly she felt a terrible pain go through her body and she started to go into labor. She had delivered a stillborn baby and tried to resuscitate him, but saw that he was not breathing and concluded that he was dead. Her neighbors saw that she was no longer pregnant, but there was no information about the baby and called the police. Marsha was then arrested and charged with capital murder. The court concluded that “the child would have survived with medical care” (p. 231). Many women suffer from the same problem and are too scared to get professional help to deliver and care for their babies. Not having enough money to afford hospital care should not be a concern for pregnant mothers because it is not safe and could end up resulting in mothers being wrongly convicted of killing their child. Wealth is not the opposite of poverty, but it is justice and we see it here because mothers who cannot afford treatment are condemned for "killing their children" but in reality they simply do not have the money to see doctors and take care of their children. killed in an accident, which is not fair to them. In addition to racial profiling and poverty, Bryan Stevenson shows us in his book how police mistreatment and brutality occurs. Police mistreatment is still a worldwide problem and exists in the United States, physically and mentally affecting predominantly black prisoners. The mistreatment of prisoners by the police is an example of mistreatment and is shown with Bryan's first client named Henry. Bryan first joined the Southern Prisoners' Defense Committee as an intern and was asked to visit this man named Henry. He was only supposed to tell him that his execution date had been postponed, but once Bryan broke the news to him, he became very happy, which surprised him. After hours of talking, the guard came back very angry because they had exceeded the time allotted to them to talk. He then “brutally shackled Henry's ankles. The guard was so angry that he tightened the handcuffs too much” (p. 11). Bryan saw him and was concerned about how tight he had tightened the restraints on Henry, but the officer angrily told him to leave. In many of Bryan's cases you can see how the police mistreat their prisoners, displaying abusive behavior. Many of these brutalized prisoners are poor and of color, which is no surprise. It is not fair what these black prisoners face every day and they deserve the same care and rights that white prisoners receive. Bryan shows us how justice and equal representation for men in these situations would be a greater pleasure than anything else. Please note: this is just an example. Get a personalized document now come on;).