Desert Island Discs Bryan Stevenson on race and criminal justice in America
Oct 22, 2025
Bryan Stevenson uncovers the staggering rise of mass incarceration in America, highlighting its dire impact on society. He advocates for truth and reconciliation to heal racial wounds, drawing parallels to Nelson Mandela's approach. Stevenson reflects on America's historic failures to address racial violence and the missed chances for reconciliation. He shares a courtroom story that exposes everyday bias and reveals a shocking judge's lack of remorse over a racial assumption, illuminating the pervasive prejudices in the justice system.
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Scale Of Mass Incarceration
- The U.S. prison population ballooned from 300,000 in 1972 to 2.3 million today, revealing systemic expansion of incarceration.
- Mass criminalisation has produced 68 million Americans with arrests, deeply limiting employment and social mobility.
A Shocking Racial Projection
- One in three black male babies in the U.S. is projected to go to jail, a new and devastating 21st-century reality.
- Stevenson ties this to a society shaped by fear, anger, and excessive punishment rather than healed racial history.
Tutu's Mandela Comparison
- Archbishop Desmond Tutu called Stevenson "America's young Mandela," a comparison linked to early legal work, not a final label.
- Stevenson accepts the honor but stresses America faces deep racial challenges needing systemic change.