Mo Money Mo Money

Slacktivist helps explain why giving to the Equal Justice Initiative is a good thing to do. He points us to this interview with EJI founder and executive director Bryan Stephenson. Some facts:

Stevenson's outstanding legal work has garnered him countless honors--among them the American Bar Association's Wisdom Award for public service, the ACLU's National Medal of Liberty, and the prestigious MacArthur Foundation Award. Bryan has kept none of the more than $300,000 in prize money. Instead he pours it back into EJI's work, while continuing to live in a rented apartment on an annual salary of $25,000.
For the men on Alabama's death row, Stevenson is not only attorney and advocate, but pastor, friend, and brother. He's always anxious to tell stories of how he has found hope amid the ugliness and pain of prison: "When you see redemption in a place where people only want revenge, healing where people only want hate, mercy and forgiveness where people only want retribution and destruction, you encounter God's love in a way that's very energizing and heartening."
Some may wonder why a Harvard-educated lawyer would spend his days on death row. "I feel blessed-- to spend each day engaged in something that gives my life meaning, that keeps me spiritually alive and aware, and that is soaked with the grace of God." Whether he's arguing a case before the Supreme Court, counseling a prisoner facing execution, or speaking with me about how race and class shape the death penalty in the United States, that same grace flows freely through Bryan, touching many lives.

You can add to a bundled donation by clicking on this link, or you can send directly to this address (probably a wise idea if you're concerned about deducting it):
Equal Justice Initiative of Alabama
122 Commerce Street
Montgomery, AL 36104


If you contribute directly, please send me an email so I can add it to the tally.