The first event of the 2015 Constitution Day Series took place at Stockton University, on the night of September 16. Sponsored by the Office of Service-Learning, the Office of the Provost, the Political Engagement Project, and the American Democracy Project, the Keynote Address featured Bryan Stevenson. A renowned lawyer, professor, author, activist, and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, Stevenson has saved the lives of countless prisoners on death row.

Unsurprisingly, the Campus Center Event Room soon filled beyond maximum capacity, and overflow audience was redirected to the Campus Center Theater to watch the speech simulcast. On the big screen, Stevenson was literally and figuratively larger than life. Beginning his speech, “Racial Justice and the Constitution,” with an anecdote of his college days, Stevenson explained that he ended up in law school because he wanted to make a difference, and because he clearly did not need to know anything in order to go there.

Throughout his speech, Stevenson focused on four points that we, as citizens, must adopt in order to implement lasting change. We must hold onto hope, change the societal narrative we tell ourselves, get closer to the problem areas of our communities, and finally, learn to be uncomfortable. Drawing off of personal experience, he recounted memories of a child incarcerated and abused in an adult prison, of a man condemned to die in spite of mental illness, and of innumerable prisoners targeted due to age and race. We live in a society where 1 out of every 3 African American males is predicted to serve jail time, and in the backdrop of Alabama, Stevenson was often forced to overcome prejudice himself. He managed to deliver heavy subject matter in a light yet powerful manner, and wove his stories into a cohesive rally for ridding the justice system of injustice. When Stevenson finished, both the event room and theater erupted into applause.

Poignant and funny by turns, the Constitution Day Address was always gripping, and left listeners with a sense of determination to fight for liberty and true justice for all.