Ted Video Response

Brian Stevenson starts off the video by explaining identity.  Identity has meaning and power depending on how you use it.  You could be a teacher and make an impact on students, or be a caring teacher and make an even bigger impact.  It's all about your identity and how you choose to use it.  He then gave us insight to his life as a child.  He talks about how his grandma would give him the biggest hugs just to make sure that he would still feel them later on.  When he was 8 or 9 years old he promised his grandma three things: to always love his mother, always do the right thing, and never drink alcohol.  To this day, he has kept those three promises.  This shows the power in identity and how much you can affect a single person's life.  He then starts talking about our country's system of justice and how most of the time wealth shapes outcomes.  The death penalty is a huge issue and the question that is always brought up with it is "Do people deserve to die for the crime they committed?"  Brian brings up a new question that reverses the roles.  "Do we deserve to kill?"  He believes that we need to stop trying so hard to give people the worst punishment imaginable and rather bring justice to the victims of the crime.  At one point he states that "Every person is better than the worst thing they've done."  He also points out that in a lot of cases, the judge has "magical powers" and can turn you into something you're not.  He believes that everyone should be given equal rights, even when on trial.  Every person should be treated the same and should face the same penalties no matter your race, class, gender, etc.  The speech is ended by Brian stating "Keep your eyes on the prize and hold on."  He says this in order to give hope for our country as a whole and hope for individuals that believe the justice system needs to be changed.