'Just Mercy' Is Free To Stream This Month To Help Educate About Systemic Racism
As protests over the death of George Floyd continue, Warner Bros. offers a free resource on systemic racism
Clear a few hours on your calendar this week, because we’ve all got some required watching to do. On Tuesday, Warner Bros. announced that they’re making the 2019 civil rights drama Just Mercy free to stream for the month of June — and it’s a must-watch, especially in light of recent events and the dialogue surrounding the murder of George Floyd.
“We believe in the power of story. Our film #JustMercy, based on the life work of civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson, is one resource we can humbly offer to those who are interested in learning more about the systemic racism that plagues our society.”
They continued, “To actively be part of the change our country is so desperately seeking, we encourage you to learn more about our past and the countless injustices that have led us to where we are today.”
Warner Bros. also gave a shout-out to “the artists, storytellers and advocates who helped make this film happen” before encouraging viewers to “watch with your family, friends, and allies.”
The powerful film, which was released in December, sees Michael B. Jordan step into the role of Stevenson. He defends Walter McMillian (Jamie Foxx), a black man on death row in Alabama who was wrongfully convicted of the 1986 murder of a white woman named Ronda Morrison. Based on Stevenson’s memoir by the same name, Just Mercy requires viewers to consider the inherent danger of being black in America. It’s based on a true story and memoir of the same name.
At the time McMillian was released in 1993, Stevenson told the New York Times ,”I think everybody needs to understand what happened because what happened today could happen tomorrow if we don’t learn some lessons from this. It was too easy for one person to come into court and frame a man for a murder he didn’t commit. It was too easy for the state to convict someone for that crime and then have him sentenced to death. And it was too hard in light of the evidence of his innocence to show this court that he should never have been here in the first place.”
Ready to watch? Warner Bros has made it pretty easy to stream. You can rent Just Mercy on demand-for-free via most streaming services, including YouTube, iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, and Google Play.
