Melissa’s Bio

THE ARCHITECTURE OF ESSAYS: TEMPLATES, CREATIVITY AND BUILDING BETTER STORIES 

At the start of the semester, I didn’t fully understand what writing truly was. My essays followed a basic formula: an introduction with a hook and a thesis statement, body paragraphs that mechanically presented a topic sentence, a point, and an explanation, and a conclusion that simply restated the thesis and summarized the main points. Writing felt more like a checklist than a creative process. When I encountered, They Say / I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein, their templates initially seemed helpful—a way to organize ideas by repeating established patterns. Over time, I began to see these templates as rigid structures that stifled my creativity, just like my old pattern. Like many students, I believed that “real” writing should flow naturally, unrestrained by predefined frameworks. Templates felt like an unoriginal crutch—a necessary evil rather than a tool to fully embrace. However, my perspective changed as Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein claim that “After all, even the most creative forms of expression depend on established patterns and structures”(introduction,1). I discovered that writing is not about choosing between structure and creativity but instead using structure as a tool to support creativity. Templates offered by Birkenstein and Graff in They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing do not restrict creativity but instead empower writers like me to communicate clearly and enter conversations smoothly. I have learned that they provide foundations to organize ideas to produce stronger writing that reflects the author’s voice, which ultimately provides creativity. 

Early in the semester, I struggled with presenting my ideas clearly and framing them from others’ perspectives. For example, in my second essay, I made an argument on how Hamid naturalizes migration, and I was able to make an argument by following advice: “Therefore, when it comes to constructing an argument (whether orally or in writing), we offer you the following advice: remember that you are entering a conversation and therefore need to start with ‘what others are saying,’ as the title of this chapter recommends, and then introduce your own ideas as a response”(Gerald,Cathy ,21).I was able to put forth an argument and use a template to express my stance. Hence, I saw the importance of templates and how they intersect with our creativity to bring about a touch of our voices. 

“Nasia Anam contends that Hamid’s speculative use of magical doors reframes migration as an optimistic narrative of hope, potential, and transformation. But Yogita Goyal offers a more critical view, arguing that ‘Hamid naturalizes the fact of migration in a way that evacuates the specific historical experiences that generate it, rendering banal what must remain historical’. I align with her critique and believe the issue lies not with the doors themselves, but in the way Hamid introduces them as merely a single step, when in reality, a door represents much more—a journey that encompasses not just the moment of crossing, but everything that came before, the trials faced during, and the uncertain future that lies beyond. Migration is not a brief transition, but a path shaped by history, trauma, and the emotional toll that weighs differently for those who undertake it.” 

Templates have helped me organize my ideas better and in a more understandable structure, allowing me to follow my own chain of thoughts and detangle the “web” of thoughts I often face when trying to write. Above is an excerpt from my second essay; it is a basic “They say” followed by an “I say.” Yet, it opens a door for me to introduce my voice and my thoughts on what I want to say. This is one of the ways the templates have complemented my writing style. In addition to that, the templates have helped me reduce my overthinking while writing, where I tend to think more than write, ending up with a web of thoughts.  

In WRI 101, I applied these templates during editing and all the well-known “Shitty First Draft” by Anne Lamott, where she shows us how first drafts contribute to the application of templates. These templates provide a way for us to organize a “web of thoughts” into an organized chain of thoughts, providing context and a flow of ideas to both readers and writers. Austin Kleon reminds us that “What a good artist understands is that nothing comes from nowhere. All creative work builds on what came before. Nothing is completely original”. I realized that I found myself guilty of using these templates and intersecting them with my creativity, of which I also plead guilty from “stealing” from my tutorial partner to make writing both academic and “beautiful.” 

Overall, this semester, I learned that nothing is ever original, and we pick from someone else, just like I picked up from my tutorial partner and integrated with the template. By engaging with scholars with different points of view, I engaged in conversations and gave out my point of view while allowing readers to follow up. Overall, I enjoyed the fact that I learned how to cite and, most importantly, join a conversation and provide a critical analysis and point of view using the templates. But I fully acknowledge that though I might have praised them throughout my essay, they still have a negative side that might lead writers to overdependence and to having works that are formulaic and sound like robots. As taught from the beginning, writing is not a one-time thing but a recursive process of several iterations and repetitions using templates until one’s creativity emerges. 

Link to google doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wRycsBsHQbCZ8saGiP582n64B6TkgiMLszVroIMVgZs/edit?usp=sharing 

Works Cited: 

1.Graff, Gerald, and Cathy Birkenstein. They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing. 5th Ed., W. W. Norton & Company, 2017 

2.Lamott, Anne. “Shitty First Drafts.” Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers, edited by Paul Eschholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark, 9th ed., Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2005, pp. 93-96. 

3.Kleon, Austin. Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative. Workman Publishing, 2012. 

Pledge MM.

Racial Bias and Systemic Injustice in Walter McMillian’s Conviction

The goal of my essay is to investigate the interaction of racial bias with other factors in wrongful convictions, using the case of Walter McMillian as a focal point. It delves deeper into factors that arise from racial bias and how they are rooted in historical and social factors that make the justice system injustice. Scholars Michelle Alexander, James Forman JR, and Dorine Marie Provine provide critical perspectives on the issue forming a conversation about race, class, and the criminal justice system.

Alexander argues that mass incarceration functions as a racial caste system, perpetuating racial control similar to Jim Crow laws. She asserts that the war on drugs was a driving factor for the establishment of policies targeting Black Americans. James Forman critiques Alexanders that she emphasizes race only alone while ignoring other factors such as race and violent crime and how they play pivotal roles in mass incarcerations. He shows how economic disadvantage amplifies the vulnerability of black people. Dorine Provine later highlights how the justice system works as a racial caste system complementing Alexander’s thesis but extending it to how public perceptions of criminality are disoriented and unfair.

This essay contributes to the ongoing debate using McMillan’s case to illustrate how race led to other factors and how they each intersect and manifest in the real world. It highlights the need to address not just the policies but also the social attitude that maintains the racial inequities in the criminal justice system.

Works Cited

• Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press, 2020.
• Forman, James Jr. “Racial Critiques of Mass Incarceration: Beyond the New Jim Crow.” New York University Law Review, vol. 87, no. 1, April 2012, pp. 21–69. Hein Online.
• Provine, Doris Marie. Unequal Under Law: Race in the War on Drugs. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007.

BALL ROOM MAP

TOPIC PROPOSAL 

• TOPIC: The Intersections of Race and other factors in the Wrongful Conviction of Walter McMillian

In this essay, I will examine how race has led to opening a door to more factors and how together they have led to the wrongful conviction of Walter McMillian, as recounted in Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy. Scholars like Michelle Alexander argue that racial biases in the criminal justice system have created a modern racial caste system, disproportionately targeting Black Americans through policies that prioritize white privilege over justice(Alexander, Introduction). James Forman Introduces another point of view where he critiques Alexander by highlighting the role of other factors such as socioeconomic factors suggesting that poverty adds vulnerability to wrongful convictions, regardless of race(Forman,54). Dorine Provine further contributes to this debate by situating these patterns within a historical and systemic context arguing that the criminal justice system functions to preserve social levels(Provine,2)

I am interested in exploring how these factors aligned together in McMillian’s case, where his race and economic success marked him as a target for suspicion in an isolated town. I will use McMillian’s case to see how all these factors contributed to fake and unsupported evidence. Through these scholars, I hope to illustrate how these biases in the criminal justice reinforce racial inequalities and assess whether addressing these injustices requires prioritizing race, class, poverty, or all of them

BIBLIOGRAPHY 

• Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press, 2020.  
• Forman, James Jr. “Racial Critiques of Mass Incarceration: Beyond the new Jim Crow.” New York University Law Review, vol. 87, no. 1, April 2012, pp. 21-69. Hein Online.  
• Stevenson, Bryan. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. Spiegel&Grau trade paperback edition. New York: Spiegel & Grau, 2019.  
• Provine, Doris Marie. Unequal under Law: Race in the War on Drugs. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007.  

PLEDGE MM

1.Citation

Hinton, Elizabeth. From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime: The Making of Mass Incarceration in America. Harvard University Press, 2016.

2.Thesis

But the extraordinary expansion of the urban police forces, court cases, and prison populations during the War on Drugs should be understood as the culmination of the domestic policies described in this book, rather than their beginning. In full historical context, the policies of the Reagan administration marked merely the fulfillment of federal crime control priorities that stemmed initially from one of the most idealistic enterprises in American history during the era of civil rights. Waged over the past half-century, since it emerged from within the War on Poverty and alongside it, this long War on Crime has today positioned law enforcement agencies, criminal justice institutions, and jails as the primary public programs in many low-income communities across the United States.(Hinton 4)

Rephrased: Hinton states that the policies established by the war on poverty and later on that led to the war on crimes were not the beginning of the making of mass incarceration but instead created a new system that was meant to address these issues.

3.Analysis

Hinton’s introductory paragraphs begin by giving us a historical summary of how the war on poverty put in place policies to fight against social inequalities and ended up creating a system of punishing that seemed to be directed at low-income black families. She then demonstrates how some policies led to racial disparities in mass incarceration. She moves back and forth through the policies that led to mass incarceration and racial disparities. She provides statistics on how they were used to justify criminals in black communities.

Hinton’s work shows how mass incarceration is a by-product of the war on poverty and war on crime policies in Black communities especially.

4.Rhetorical Strategies:

1. Historical Context that helps to understand where her thesis is based and how her argument is built.

2.Use of Statistics to enhance her credibility and backup her facts

3. use of photographs as another way of narrating her argument

WALTER MCMILLAN: A CLOSER LOOK ON FACTORS THAT INFLUENCED A WRONG VERDICT    

“My life was ruined because someone said I had done something terrible. And it didn’t matter that it wasn’t true.” (Stevenson, Chapter One) These words from Walter McMillian, as recounted by Bryan Stevenson reveal the harrowing reality of his wrongful conviction. Walter McMillian, a “Black man” in Monroeville, Alabama, was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death, a verdict rooted in coerced testimony and the systemic biases of a justice system targeting his race. As Bryan Stevenson recounts, McMillans case exemplifies how race acted as a key determinant within the American criminal Justice system to deliver his verdict. Despite a strong alibi supported by friends and neighbors, including a police officer, McMillian was arrested, tried by an almost all-white jury in just a day and a half, and sentenced to death. It took six years of appeals and new evidence, gathered by Bryan Stevenson and the Equal Justice Initiative, before McMillian was finally cleared and released in 1993.    

As Stevenson grandmother said to him “You can’t understand most of the important things from a distance, you have to get closer”. This argues that to fully understand and address the injustices within the criminal justice system, we must look at how race opens doors into other broader aspects such as violent crimes, drug sentencing and poverty. Drawing on the work of scholars such as James Forman JR, Dorine Provine and Alexander Michelle, this essay analyzes how these factors rooted in racial biases intersected in the case of Walter Mcmillan and led to his wrongful conviction.  

Walter started a successful lumber business in the 1970s, which caused suspicion among the white community. In 1986, he had a scandalous affair with a younger, soon-to-be-divorced white woman named Karen Kelly, and their relationship lead to a child custody battle between Karen and her husband at which Walter was forced to testify. Walter’s reputation suffered from his involvement with Karen. The South had a long history of laws prohibiting interracial sexual relationships, which were not struck down by the Supreme Court until 1967.After Walter’s court appearance, a white college student, Ronda Morrison, was murdered, and police were unable to determine the perpetrator. Karen became involved with an ex-criminal, Ralph Myers, and they were implicated in the murder of another young woman, Vickie Pittman. When questioned by the police, Ralph claimed that he, Walter, and Karen killed both young women. (Stevenson,50)  

Provine’s argument shows how the criminal justice system can reflect broader societal inequalities. As she observes, “The fundamental question is whether the USA has developed a fully functioning democracy, based on equal respect for all, or whether it remains in important aspects a racial caste state where opportunities are hierarchically organized to benefit some groups at the expense of others” (Provine, 2). In Walter McMillian’s case, the deliberate assumption of guilt due to his race and his relationship with a white woman is a clear example of how criminal justice is more of prioritizing the protection of white privilege at the expense of Black lives. “But there was no evidence against McMillian no evidence except that he was an African American man involved in an adulterous interracial affair, which meant he was reckless and possibly dangerous, even if he had no prior criminal history and a good reputation. Maybe that was evidence enough.” (Just Mercy,38). McMillian’s conviction and the coerced testimony used against him were not backed up by facts —they were based on a racial caste system designed to uphold social hierarchies rather than justice. This reflects what Provine describes as expectation of criminality associated with racial minorities.  

Alexander Michelle provides a compelling lens to view McMillan’s case. In her article she argues that mass incarceration has become a modern-day system of racial control, much like Jim Crow laws. This system disproportionately targets Black Americans, leading to widespread discrimination and limiting their opportunities. She introduces the war on drugs that played a role into bringing policies that were meant to reduce usage but instead lead to birth of a new racial caste system. Even though Alexander’s analogy demonstrates the racial dimensions of mass incarceration, it does not fully address the other intersecting factors that contribute to these injustices.  

James Forman Jr critiques Michelle Alexander’s framework by highlighting its emphasis on race while overlooking factors such as socioeconomic status and the prevalence of violent crime in driving sentencing. Forman argues that economic disadvantages often amplify the vulnerability of black community making them more susceptible to wrongful convictions (Forman,54). In Walter’s case, additionally to his race intertwined with other factors such as class, social and historical factors. Stevenson recounts how Walter McMillan’s family used their resources to hire a lawyer, only to be looked down upon by unsupported accusations that the money was derived from drug deals (Stevenson,61). This assumption, rooted in stereotypes about poor black communities, supports the systematic tendency of equating economic disadvantage to criminality. Forman’s insight on the role of class disparities demonstrates how socioeconomic background also becomes a driving factor in McMillan’s case. The composition of McMillian jury-composed of entirely white people-further emphasizes these insights. Moreover, the swift conviction despite solid evidence of innocence aligns with both scholar’s observation that racial bias in criminal justice often overrides true evidence. The fact that McMillian’s alibi was valid and supported by many including a police officer was disregarded reflects the power of these racial expectations. Forman’s insight on the role of class disparities demonstrates how socioeconomic background also becomes a driving factor in McMillan’s case.  

Walter McMillian’s case serves as a powerful example of how these intersecting factors such as race and class impact individuals. McMillian, a “Black man” with no prior criminal record, was wrongfully convicted of murder based on unsupported, racially motivated evidence. In his case, his association with a white woman, combined with his economic success as a businessman in a racially isolated town, made him a target for suspicion. His Identity as a “Black Man” subjected as the perfect figure for criminality and danger that was not rooted in evidence but in a legacy of racial discrimination. I continuously highlight and put emphasis on “Black man” because all these authors have analyzed case study of black men from Jarvis cotton to Edward James Clarry who were under a death sentence based not on evidence but the fact that the criminal justice that is racially neutral identified them as threats. Using McMillan’s story, this essay emphasizes the urgent need to confront the American criminal justice system and uncover the injustices hidden within. Addressing them not only one by one but from the roots which this essay has shown to be “Race”. As Bryan Stevenson recounts, only by “getting closer” to these injustices do we understand them. Walter’s McMillan’s case is not just another story but a call to action-a reminder that justice can only prevail when we acknowledge and address the forces working beneath.  

WORK CITED:  

• Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press, 2020.  

• Forman, James Jr. “Racial Critiques of Mass Incarceration: Beyond the new Jim Crow.” New York University Law Review, vol. 87, no. 1, April 2012, pp. 21-69. Hein Online.  

• Stevenson, Bryan. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. Spiegel&Grau trade paperback edition. New York: Spiegel & Grau, 2019.  

• Provine, Doris Marie. Unequal under Law: Race in the War on Drugs. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007.  

Comments: 

Tate 

Hi Melz, 

Great essay! I really enjoyed your introduction and narration of Walter McMillians story and your use of the Stevenson quote in the first line. It really functions as a hook, especially those who have not read the book. You also use some good voice markers (“in this essay”) which make it easier to follow as a reader. 

My biggest suggestion would be to narrow down the number of sources that you are using because they almost create clutter. While I think Stevenson, Provine, and Alexander have a role to play in your essay, Forman and Hinton do not really add as much, in my opinion. Another thing to look at is your thesis. Narrowing it down even more might help you create a clearer focus for the rest of your essay. You could also cut a bit of clutter in the thesis by making it one sentence (eg. “In this essay, we will explore the intersectionality between race and socioeconomic status, using the case study of Walter McMillian”). If you decide to stick with Walter, I would want to see more of his story integrated throughout the essay. 

One thing that you do well in this essay are your purposeful summaries. The beginning sentence of the final paragraph is really well put together, concise, and clear. If you want to keep using Forman, I would definitely keep that sentence. But past the summaries, I want to see more direct quotes. There is a lot you could do with all 5 works that might allow you to have your own voice shine more in the essay, and part of that is by using direct quotes. This is just my opinion though, so please take this with a grain of salt! 

Best of luck revising your essay, I am excited to read the finished product. 

Tate 

Nikita 

Melz, 

Very nice essay! I like how you assemble ideas from different sources, which don’t lay on each other without purpose; rather, different scholars’ opinions create a coherent flow in your essay. While the flow of your essay is pretty logical, I feel I was a bit tired while reading it. In order to increase the engagement of your reader, I would suggest you include your thesis in the first or second paragraph–just closer to the beginning. 

Another aspect that needs some improvement is the explanation of your thesis: I didn’t understand how economic hardships make an impact on the mass incarceration of African Americans. If I were you, I would have searched for scholars who plunge into this issue more. I confess that Forman is a great example but I feel that he doesn’t have as much information for you, as others do. 

Finally, there is only one paragraph–the last one–that explains how economic disadvantage impacts people of color. Its location also makes your reader a little bored. Try to incorporate more information about this issue. 

Overall, your first draft is good. The corrections I suggested will ensure the coherent flow of your essay, encouraging you to do more research on your topic. 

Pledge MM 

1.Citation

Forman, James Jr. “Racial Critiques of Mass Incarceration: Beyond the new Jim Crow.” New York University Law Review, vol. 87, no. 1, April 2012, p. 21-69. HeinOnline.

2.Thesis

“This Article argues that despite these important contributions, the Jim Crow analogy leads to a distorted view of mass incarceration. The analogy presents an incomplete account of mass incarceration’s historical origins, fails to consider black attitudes toward crime and punishment, ignores violent crimes while focusing almost exclusively on drug crimes, obscures class distinctions within the African American community,and overlooks the effects of mass incarceration on other racial groups. Finally, the Jim Crow analogy diminishes our collective memory of the Old Jim Crow’s particular harms” (Forman 21).

Rephrased: Forman argues that while the “New Jim Crow” analogy—linking modern mass incarceration to historical Jim Crow laws—draws needed attention to racial injustices, it presents an incomplete view. He believes the analogy overlooks essential factors such as the role of violent crime, class distinctions within the black community, and the broader effects on other racial groups, thus simplifying the roots and complexity of mass incarceration.

3.Analysis

Forman’s writing is very distinguishable as in this article he begins with a “they say” that comes right after his thesis which helps the reader to remain captured in his article. He goes on by providing a road map of his arguments and how he develops and builds upon them guiding the reader.

Why are you critiquing a point of view that is so closely aligned
with your own? Although the New Jim Crow writers and I agree more
often than we disagree, the disagreements matter. I believe that the
Jim Crow analogy neglects some important truths and must be criticized in the service of truth. (Forman,23)

He clearly shows what he is arguing about and why it matters and affirms his credibility to his readers to provide a reason to as why he is arguing “As an academic, I have written extensively about the toll that mass incarceration has taken on the African American community […] I am also a former public defender who co-founded a school that educates young people […]” (Forman p. 23)​.

Forman continues by providing a history of the new Jim Crow by including how he will contribute to conversations made by William Buckman and John Lambert on how the war on drugs led to racial profiling yet remaining central to the new Jim crow(Forman,25)

He then praises Alexander’s work and credits her on how her work brings attention to racial injustice yet leaves behind various other important factors. He adds on that the New Jim crow portrays blacks as victims and obscures the fact that they support punitive policies(Forman,37)

For the most part, Alexander avoids this trap. In The New Jim
Crow, she reminds us that the primary targets of mass incarceration
are poor, uneducated blacks. 43 Moreover, she assails the civil rights
establishment for focusing its energies on policies that advance the
interests of middle-class blacks-such as affirmative action-while
overlooking the crisis that mass incarceration represents for the urban
poor.(Forman,57)

He concludes by providing a common ground with the New Jim Crow writers(Forman,64).He additionally provides what could be done to combat mass incarceration.

4. Rhetorical Moves

1.Introducing the thesis in the beginning to allow readers to understand what they are going to read about

2. Forman uses a technique of asking questions and immediately answering them

1.Citation

Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press, 2020. 

2.Thesis

This book argues that mass incarceration is, metaphorically, the New Jim Crow and that all those who care about social justice should fully commit themselves to dismantling this new racial caste system. Mass incarceration—not attacks on affirmative action or lax civil
rights enforcement—is the most damaging manifestation of the backlash
against the Civil Rights Movement. The popular narrative that emphasizes
the death of slavery and Jim Crow and celebrates the nation’s “triumph over
race” with the election of Barack Obama, is dangerously misguided. The
colorblind public consensus that prevails in America today—i.e., the
widespread belief that race no longer matters—has blinded us to the
realities of race in our society and facilitated the emergence of a new caste
system.(Alexander,22)

Paraphrased:

Michelle Alexander argues that mass incarceration has become a modern-day system of racial control, much like Jim Crow laws. This system disproportionately targets Black Americans, leading to widespread discrimination and limiting their opportunities.

3.Analysis

Alexander’s Book takes us on a journey where she demonstrates how mass incarceration in the United States functions as a new system of racial control and she calls it The New Jim Crow.

Using Jarvis Cotton she demonstrates how the New Jim Crow is based on new tactics that aim to discriminate against Black people in the United States. As she digs deeper into the Justice system of America she can understand that racial discrimination never ended but instead changed hence her new theory of A new Jim Crow which is a redesigned system to discriminate against Black people for their rights.

She moves forward and introduces us to the war on drugs to demonstrate how drugs were used as a way to increase crime rates among black people to implement racial discrimination through mass incarceration due to the increase of drug use among Black people. She adds “One in three young African American men is currently under the control of the criminal justice system—in prison, in jail, on probation, or on parole—yet mass
incarceration tends to be categorized as a criminal justice issue as opposed
to a racial justice or civil rights issue (or crisis).”(Alexander,20)

She concludes by giving us an overview of what the book highlights in each chapter to allow the readers to be captured and understand the depth of the issue.

4. Rhetorical Moves:

1. Call to action: In the last paragraph of the introduction she encourages readers to understand the situation and make a change about the situation “No task is more urgent for racial justice advocates today than ensuring that America’s current racial caste system is its last.”
2. Using personal narrative, Alexander opens with the story of Jarvious Cotton, who is unable to vote due to a felony conviction, just as generations of his family were prevented from voting under slavery, Jim Crow, and Klan violence.

KEYWORD:MERCY

Mercy(noun):

1. Compassionate treatment or leniency shown toward someone, especially when it is within one’s power to punish or harm.

Example: “Proximity to the condemned and incarcerated made the question of each person’s humanity more urgent and meaningful, including my own” (Introduction, p. 16).

2. An action of forgiveness and empathy, often applied even when undeserved; a refusal to condemn.

Example: “Each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve ever done” (Chapter 15, p. 290).

3. The exercise of grace and understanding in a justice system, sometimes as a response to recognizing shared humanity and brokenness.

Example: “I’ve also represented people who have committed terrible crimes but nonetheless struggle to recover and to find redemption” (Chapter 12, p. 245).

1. Introduction (Page 18) – Stevenson shares his first experience on death row, underscoring the value of proximity to those condemned and how this proximity makes mercy essential. This sets the tone for mercy as an act tied to understanding others’ humanity, even within a system that is otherwise harsh.
2. Chapter 6: “Surely Doomed” (Page 109) – Mercy surfaces as a response to suffering and injustice. Stevenson describes how seeing prisoners, including children, facing harsh sentences forced him to re-evaluate the purpose of punishment versus the need for empathy.
3. Chapter 1:Mocking Bird(Page 23): Stevenson describes how he learned the meaning of mercy through his clients: “We are all implicated when we allow other people to be mistreated. An absence of compassion can corrupt the decency of a community, a state, a nation… we all need some measure of unmerited grace”
4. Chapter 5: Of the Coming of John(page 105): This chapter reflects on mercy as an alternative to punitive justice: “Mercy is… transformative when it is directed at the undeserving”​

ILLUSTRATION OF WORD “MERCY IN THE NOVEL”

WALTER MCMILLAN: A CLOSER LOOK ON FACTORS THAT INFLUENCED A WRONG VERDICT  

“My life was ruined because someone said I had done something terrible. And it didn’t matter that it wasn’t true.” (Stevenson, Chapter One) These words from Walter McMillian, as recounted by Bryan Stevenson reveal the harrowing reality of his wrongful conviction. Walter McMillian, a Black man in Monroeville,Alabama,was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death, a verdict rooted in coerced testimony and the systemic biases of a justice system targeting his race and economic disadvantage. As Bryan Stevenson recounts, McMillans case exemplifies how race and poverty within the American criminal Justice system intersect. Despite a strong alibi supported by friends and neighbors, including a police officer, McMillian was arrested, tried by an almost all-white jury in just a day and a half, and sentenced to death. It took six years of appeals and new evidence, gathered by Bryan Stevenson and the Equal Justice Initiative, before McMillian was finally cleared and released in 1993.  

“But there was no evidence against McMillian no evidence except that he was an African American man involved in an adulterous interracial affair, which meant he was reckless and possibly dangerous, even if he had no prior criminal history and a good reputation. Maybe that was evidence enough.” (Just Mercy,38) .McMillian’s case is deeply rooted in racial injustice. Doris Marie Provine’s argument supported this claim and according to her research that “The stark difference in penalties for crack and powder cocaine, two drugs that are pharmacologically identical, provoked immediate debate and litigation because crack, from its inception, was regarded as a drug of the black urban ghetto, whereas powder cocaine has tended to be associate with wealthier whiter class of drug users ”(Provine,46). This disparity in perception and punishment reveals the underlying racial biases in drug policy, reinforcing systemic inequality. By framing crack as a “black” drug, policymakers not only perpetuated racial fears but also wielded these fears as a tool to exert control over Black communities, paving the way for a modern racial caste system. Building on this, Michelle Alexander’s book adds that mass incarceration functions as a new system of racial control, effectively creating a racial caste system (the New Jim Crow,23). However, James Forman Jr. challenges Alexander’s framework arguing that her analysis overlooks other crucial factors such as class, violent crime rates, and the complex interplay of various social and economic forces (Forman,27). Elizabeth Hinton further complicates this debate, asserting that mass incarceration lies in multiple injustices beyond just racial injustice (Hinton,10). 

As Stevenson grandmother said to him “You can’t understand most of the important things from a distance, you have to get closer”. This essay argues that to fully understand and address the injustices within the criminal justice system, we must look beyond race itself and look into other broader aspects such as economic status. We will analyze how economic disadvantage intersects with racial bias and gain understanding of the factors that led to Walter McMillian’s wrongful conviction. 

Doris Marie Provines work, and Michelle Alexander book provide crucial framework to understand the racial system and how it relates to Walter McMillian’s case. Provine argues that American criminal justice policy particularly concerning drugs, is racially framed, resulting in a system that targets African Americans. Additionally, Alexander contends that “I use the term racial caste in this book the way it is used in common parlance to denote a stigmatized racial group locked into an inferior position by law and custom. Jim Crow and slavery were caste systems. So is our current system of mass incarceration.” (Alexander,23). These are portrayed in McMillan’s case when he is assumed to be part of the “Dixie Mafia” despite the lack of evidence. This reflects what Provine describes as expectation of criminality associated with racial minorities. Simultaneously it reflects what Alexander calls a “Racial caste system” where people of color are kept in an inferior position. The composition of McMillian jury-composed of entirely white people-further emphasizes these insights. Moreover, the swift conviction despite solid evidence of innocence aligns with both scholar’s observation that racial bias in criminal justice often overrides true evidence. The fact that McMillian’s alibi was valid and supported by many including a police officer was disregarded reflects the power of these racial expectations. Alexander highlights this because addressing such injustices is so challenging. She argues that this new system of racial control has been immune from legal challenge. In McMillian’s case, it took years to overcome the biases and secure his release. 

James Forman Jr critiques Michelle Alexander’s framework by highlighting its emphasis on race while overlooking factors such as socioeconomic status and the prevalence of violent crime in driving sentencing. Forman argues that economic disadvantages often amplify the vulnerability of black community making them more susceptible to wrongful convictions (Forman,54). Stevenson recounts how Walter McMillan’s family used their resources to hire a lawyer, only to be looked down upon by unsupported accusations that the money was derived from drug deals (Stevenson,61). This assumption, rooted in stereotypes about poor black communities, supports the systematic tendency of equating economic disadvantage to criminality. Forman’s insight on the role of class disparities demonstrates how socioeconomic background also becomes a driving factor in McMillan’s case. Economic disadvantage not only enhanced McMillans’ wrong conviction but also shaped the way his character and actions were perceived. His position as a small-scale black business owner in a predominantly white community added to the racial and class-based assumptions that fueled his wrongful conviction. Stevenson tells us that Mcmillan’s success as self-employed logger, owning land and equipment challenged the hierarchy where black prosperity was viewed as suspicion (Stevenson,50).As Forman argues, the justice system not only penalizes poverty but also criminalizes it, creating a cycle where economic status becomes both a cause and justification for a bias(Forman,56). 

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WORK CITED: 

• Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press, 2020. 

• Forman, James Jr. “Racial Critiques of Mass Incarceration: Beyond the new Jim Crow.” New York University Law Review, vol. 87, no. 1, April 2012, pp. 21-69. Hein Online. 

• Hinton, Elizabeth. “Introduction: Origins of Mass Incarceration.” From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime, Harvard University Press, 2016, pp. 1-26. 

• Stevenson, Bryan. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. Spiegel&Grau trade paperback edition. New York: Spiegel & Grau, 2019. 

• Provine, Doris Marie. Unequal under Law: Race in the War on Drugs. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007. 

ACKNOLEDGEMNT 

I acknowledge use of ChatGPT to refine the flow my paragraph 

Original paragraph: Doris Marie Provine’s argument supported this claim and according to her research that “The stark difference in penalties for crack and powder cocaine, two drugs that are pharmacologically identical, provoked immediate debate and litigation because crack, from its inception, was regarded as a drug of the black urban ghetto, whereas powder cocaine has tended to be associate with wealthier whiter class of drug users ”(Provine,46).This proves the point of racial inequality and confirming the racial fears but a way to enforce power on the black society that later on lead to the racial caste system. 

Request: how can I have a smoother transition from the quote to the explanation? 

ChatGPT: Doris Marie Provine’s argument supports this claim. She highlights that “The stark difference in penalties for crack and powder cocaine, two drugs that are pharmacologically identical, provoked immediate debate and litigation because crack, from its inception, was regarded as a drug of the black urban ghetto, whereas powder cocaine has tended to be associated with a wealthier, whiter class of drug users” (Provine, 46). This disparity in perception and punishment reveals the underlying racial biases in drug policy, reinforcing systemic inequality. By framing crack as a “black” drug, policymakers not only perpetuated racial fears but also wielded these fears as a tool to exert control over Black communities, paving the way for a modern racial caste system. 

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