Just Mercy | a discussion guide

As I reflect on resources or media outlets that have helped me “look back” at where we have been in our country, I can’t help but think of Just Mercy. This film is an inside look into a world that our students may know little about. Brian Stevenson’s work to bring justice to those who do not have a voice reflects God’s heart for the marginalized and awakens my heart to live in the same way.

The Movie Just Mercy is streaming for free on Amazon Prime and YouTube for the month of June. I hope that you and your family are able to watch it and have a discussion around the topics of race, justice, and equality. Please feel free to use the questions that we have provided after you and your family watch the movie to help get the conversation started!

Discussion Questions

1.) Talk about your initial reaction after watching the movie. What are you feeling? Angry? Sad? Confused?

2.) What’s one thing you learned that you didn’t know before?

3.) What was the most powerful scene to you in the film? What/how did it make you feel? How do you think the characters felt in that scene?

4.) How did you feel watching the scene where Stevenson is harassed, assaulted, and threatened by the police officer holding a gun to his head while the other officer rifled through his possessions and verbally intimidated him? What do you think that experience was like for Him? Talk through some of the emotions you felt while watching that play out.

5.) Think about what the some of the main characters were going through, what do you think it would feel like to be in their shoes through what they experienced?

6.) Did any of your opinions about race or the death penalty change because of the movie? Why or why not?

7.) Do you think that people still experience injustice and mistreatment in the same ways that you saw in the movie? Have you personally witnessed others be judged because of their race?

8.) How do you think it feels to be judged because of your race?

9.) What are ways that you can respond to injustice? What do you think God calls us to do when we see injustice? Think about the injustice you see in your schools, neighborhood, and city.

About the author:
Kyle Szucs

Kyle Szucs is the Groups Director at the Kentwood Campus.