Bryan Stevenson Discusses “Proximity”

“There is power in proximity. When you get proximate to people who are suffering, you can wrap your arms around them, and you will be empowered with the belief that you can change the world. This will allow you to change the world.”

Activist and veteran public interest attorney Bryan Stevenson delivered an evening assembly on Tuesday, Feb. 19, encouraging students to take action against issues of social justice. Through personal anecdotes about his advocacy for disadvantaged inmates convicted or sentenced unjustly, Stevenson left a lasting impression on Exonians. For many, this was the most impactful assembly in their time at the Academy. At the conclusion of the assembly, Principal William Rawson agreed to purchase a copy of Stevenson’s Just Mercy, a New York Times bestseller, for any interested member of the student body.

The Academy invited Stevenson through the Henry Bragdon Public Service & Interest Fellows Fund, which brings speakers with a demonstrated commitment to public service. Tuesday was not Stevenson’s first time at PEA—he also spoke at Exeter’s 2015 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Barbara Whetherbee from the Office of Institutional Advancement provided staff support to the Bragdon Fellow Committee, which is tasked with the responsibility of deciding each year who to invite to Exeter’s assembly stage each year. “Through the years, our Bragdon speakers have given us concrete examples of individual lives that reflect non sibi and service to others,” she said. “In selecting this year’s Bragdon Fellow, there was strong support for having Mr. Stevenson return to Exeter as our Henry Bragdon Speaker—from alumni, faculty and students alike.”

A graduate of Eastern University, Harvard Law School and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Stevenson is also the founder and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative, which provides legal services to underprivileged and death-row inmates.

“Stevenson’s work fighting poverty and race discrimination in the justice system has won him numerous personal awards—perhaps too many to name,” Rawson, who delivered the assembly’s introductory address, said. Among these are the MacArthur “Genius Grant” and honorary doctorates from multiple universities.

In his assembly, Stevenson encouraged students to take decisive action. “I truly believe we’re living in a time when we need a generation of people like you to change the world,” he said.

For Stevenson, his choice to be “proximate” to suffering changed the trajectory of his life. He recalled finding himself adrift as a young student at Harvard Law School. “In that moment of crisis, I got proximate,” he said. “I took a course that made me spend a month in the Georgia, where I met a group of lawyers who were animated by the work that they were doing.”

That month in Georgia became the catalyst for a life in service of the condemned. “If I’ve done anything, it’s because I got proximate to a condemned man,” he said. “I want to help condemned people get to higher ground.”

Stevenson then highlighted the need to change the narratives that go unquestioned. “There are often narratives that go unstated, that shape how people think, how people reason,” he said. “It’s almost as if we’ve acculturated ourselves to these grim statistics, these grim realities that have shaped lives.”

Stevenson argued that justice must come with awareness of those unfairly condemned. “The narrative of racial difference is used to justify the actions of our courts that rule against the disadvantaged,” he said. According to Stevenson, these narratives illuminate systemic racism that still remains in America. “Slavery was not abolished, it has simply evolved,” Stevenson said. “You can’t have reconciliation until you first have truth.”

To achieve a new paradigm, however, Stevenson urges the audience to remain intentional in keeping hope alive. “Hopelessness is the enemy of justice,” he said. “Protect your hope quotient.”

In addition, Stevenson called on the audience to seek out discomfort. “We can’t change the world unless we do things that are uncomfortable and inconvenient. Sometimes, you need to position yourself in uncomfortable situations to see the truth, to see things for what they are,” he said. Only then, he pressed, would change come.

Stevenson’s powerful words five years ago inspired Instructor in Physical Education Olutoyin Augustus to organize the Equal Justice Initiative Trip to Selma and Montgomery, Alabama. Prior to their trip, all participants were asked to read Just Mercy.

During this year’s trip, the group drew connections between the slavery of the past and the mass incarceration that continues to this day. Upper Lilly Pinciaro, who attended the trip last year, recalled it to be a powerful experience. “It was my first real introduction to social justice, and it became my inspiration to pursue the path which has now become one of the most important aspects of who I am and what I hope to do with my life,” she said. During the trip, the group travelled to prominent landmarks such as the Selma Interpretive Center, as well as the Equal Justice Initiative Office.

Given their experiences, trip participants were eager to meet Stevenson in person. “I was excited to learn that he was actually going to talk about his own experiences [and come] to the campus,” lower Caroline Huang, who went on the 2017 trip, said. “I couldn’t believe we were going to meet him in person and get his perspective on the work he’s been doing.”

Other students who did not have prior knowledge about Stevenson were equally as impressed by Stevenson’s eloquence. “He was probably the best assembly speaker I’ve seen so far. He was a really good public speaker,” prep Luke Chinberg said. “It was really powerful, and he engaged the whole audience. Everyone was really quiet, in a way that it’s never been at assembly.”

Similarly, upper Prashant Saxena noted that students were unusually focused. “The room went silent when he began to talk. When he made a joke, people responded well, and they quieted down when he began to speak,” he said. “Typically, there are students who play on their phones [during Assembly], but there were very few tonight.”

Faculty members were equally moved by Stevenson’s words. “I also felt uplifted by the student response. I hope everyone came away believing that they too can follow Mr. Stevenson’s example and change people’s lives and the world,” Rawson said.

For students interested in public service, Stevenson’s words presented a potential area of focus. “I was familiar with his work, but hearing him in person, I was so inspired,” senior Luca Cantone said. “I’ve been intending to go into public service for a while in government, but his emphasis on proximity, engaging with the human aspect of suffering—that is going to really inform my thinking, my future.”

Members of the community found Stevenson’s message to be particularly applicable to the Academy. “I thought this was not only a great speech, but it really brought to light everything we all needed to hear,” postgraduate Catherine Skinner said. “Even though this is a diverse place, we’re a community who should go out and take action.”

At the close of his assembly, Stevenson was present to sign copies of his book. Students responded en masse, and the line for a signature remained for over twenty minutes. While the Exeter Bookstore had prepared copies for Stevenson’s arrival, they quickly sold out.

Prior to the signing, Rawson announced his intention to purchase copies for any interested students. “If any student wants it, I will buy the book,” he announced. “The Principal’s Discretionary Fund will buy any book that any student wants.” After Stevenson’s departure, Rawson sent another message to the student body, announcing his intention to purchase the book in bulk to “provide to every student who wants one,” according to Rawson’s email.

“I wanted every student to be able to have a copy of the book,” Rawson said. “I didn’t want any student to miss out because of cost.”

As he prepared to leave the Assembly Hall stage, Stevenson left the student body with a call to action. “You have honored me by inviting me into your campus,” he said. “When you choose to stand up, I will be standing with you, I will be cheering with you. I hope that when I stand up, you’ll be standing with me too.”