Bryan Stevenson's experience with a criminal justice system that "treats you better if you're affluent and guilty than if you're poor and innocent" is told mostly in his own words in True Justice. In honest conversations with associates, close family members, and customers, the stress of dealing with this system is discussed. This feature documentary follows the interconnected history of slavery, lynching, segregation, and mass imprisonment, and focuses on Bryan Stevenson's life and work, notably his critique of the US criminal justice system for its role in codifying current systemic racism. True Justice provides a unique view into the human battle that is necessary when the poor and people of color are wrongfully accused or unfairly punished, as well as the personal toll it takes, by highlighting watershed events involving cases and clients. The film follows EJI's activities in Alabama as well as Bryan Stevenson's early inspirations that led him to become an advocate for the impoverished and jailed. He saw personally how courts wrongly imposed the death sentence based on race as a young lawyer in the 1980s, and how the Supreme Court eventually determined that racial prejudice in the death penalty administration was "inevitable."

 

True Justice follows the Supreme Court's path from the Dred Scott decision in 1857, which declared African Americans to be non-citizens. It demonstrates how the Court has historically sanctioned inequity, tyranny, and brutality. The video instills optimism for a brighter American future by illuminating the power of memory in cultural transformation. The video also features the historic unveiling of EJI's Legacy Museum and National Memorial for Peace and Justice, which honors the more than 4,400 African American lynching victims. The video also features the historic unveiling of EJI's Legacy Museum and National Memorial for Peace and Justice, which honors the more than 4,400 African American lynching victims. EJI is working with communities as part of the endeavor to identify lynching victims by collecting dirt from lynching sites and installing historical markers. True Justice: Bryan Stevenson's Fight for Equality exposes a history of genuine justice that must not be lost.