“Just Mercy,” is a movie that tells the true story of an African American lawyer, Bryan Stevenson, and his fight to win the freedom of his
first client Walter McMillian. Who was accused of having murdered an 18 year old white girl, even though there was strong evidence that supported his innocence. The story is set in Alabama in 1989, a time in history that had overwhelming amounts of racial prejudice amount the American populous, especially in the south. The power dynamics in this movie are clearly shown in my opinion. With Mr. Stevenson and those he associates with being seen as lesser. And everyone else, such as the judge and police department, being depicted as greater in some way. This is a blatantly obvious depiction of “othering.” “Othering” wasn’t something that was strictly reserved to African Americas in the story either. Eva Ansley was a white women who was employed of Mr. Stevenson, and she experienced prejudice right alongside her boss and even had her life threaten. Obviously, this treatment wasn’t based on her race but instead was based on what she stood for and who she stood with. I thought this was a nice little add on to the story since it showed that making someone feel as though they are less is a conscious choice. Along with how someone who is from the group considered to be greater can go against the social normal to stand for what is right. Another thing that I loved about the story is that it shed light on two different issues at the same time. The first being the prejudice towards African Americans in the judicial and law enforcement worlds. While at the same time depicting the tragic truth of how many on death row are wrongly convicted. Either due to false evidence or lack of effort on the part of the attorney. I believe the intended take away of this film was that the judicial system is messed up and needs reform. And with the movie being released in 2019 it added to be discussion surrounding the issues that spurred the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. I also think it brought to the table the reality of what death row is like. And started a conversation about whether it should still be legal in the US considering the rate of false conviction is so high for those given that sentence.

When I started doing research on what to write my presentation on, I keep coming back to the history of the Jhumpa Lahiri. As a reader, I think knowing the history of the author helps understand their writing better.

Jhumpa was born in London England, to a librarian and schoolteacher hailing from the state of West Bengal in Idina. Her family would later move to Kingston, Rhode Island when she was just three years old. Growing up, Lahiri’s mother wanted her children to know their Bengal culture. Which lead to Lahiri feeling pressure to be a part of both worlds, and as if both sides where fighting with each other. She would unknowingly go on to write her first published work, Interpreter of Maladies, about the struggles of life as an Indian American immigrant. Her original intent when she first started writing this collection of stories was to merge the two dualling sides of her identity. Something she was too afraid to do in her real life. Also, in this work there is the story, “The Third and Final Continent,” where the model for the protagonist is her own father. The “Interpreter of Maladies” would go on to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2000. Lahiri’s other works have also gone on to win a myriad of other awards throughout her career as well.

Below is a video from The New Yorker of Lahiri taking about her writing.

Encyclopedia Britannica. “Jhumpa Lahiri.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 7 July 2020, www.britannica.com/biography/Jhumpa-Lahiri.

Wikipedia. “Jhumpa Lahiri.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Aug. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jhumpa_Lahiri.

“Jhumpa Lahiri.” Jhumpa Lahiri | Steven Barclay Agency, Steven Barclay Agency, barclayagency.com/speakers/jhumpa-lahiri/.