On May 1st, NYU Stern Business & Society Program hosted the Spring 2026 Ashok C. Sani Distinguished Speaker Series. The event featured Bryan Stevenson, Founder and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative, who shared insights from his lifelong work addressing injustice and systemic challenges. Stevenson’s perspective on creating a healthier environment, nation, and world drew a packed audience, filling Gardner Commons and an overflow room as attendees eagerly anticipated his insights. 

The event began with an introduction by one of Stern’s very own leaders in higher education, Victor C. Mullins, PhD, Senior Associate Dean for the Office of Stern Life. Mullins framed Stevenson’s work around a powerful truth: each of us is more than the worst thing we have ever done. Stevenson challenges us to look inward, lead with courage, and act with compassion: values that set the stage for his broader message. 

Stevenson, known for his bestselling book, Just Mercy, and his creation of the Legacy Museum and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, gave an hour-long lecture depicting the current political climate. In an era marked by rising tensions, anger, and division, there are more anxieties about the direction of the collective. Drawing from his experience and career advocating with the poor, the condemned, and the marginalized, he decided to center the talk on the future. Stevenson’s message resonated deeply, offering a roadmap for confronting injustice, which left every guest with a sense of purpose as they returned to the outside world.

Stevenson’s talk centered around 4 main points:

1. Get closer - we can only begin to understand the landscape around us, the suffering and injustice, if we allow ourselves to get closer to those who are disfavored
2. Change narratives - the stories we tell and uphold can perpetuate inequality. While disagreement is inevitable, we must unite in dismantling narratives rooted in hate and bigotry. We have come too far to be silenced.
3. Stay hopeful - we stand on the shoulders of those who achieved so much with so little. Hope is not passive; it’s the driving force behind meaningful change.
4. Do the uncomfortable, inconvenient thing - justice demands courage, even when it’s difficult.

Stevenson’s words weren’t just a call to reflection; they were a challenge to action. As we move forward, his roadmap reminds us that the work of justice is ongoing, personal, and necessary. The question isn’t whether we can make a difference but whether we will.
 

Bryan Stevenson

Bryan Stevenson in Gardner Commons

Batia Wiesenfeld (Director of the Business & Society Program), Bryan Stevenson, and the Sani Family

About the Ashok C. Sani Lecture Series
Ashok C. Sani (BS ’74), for whom this lecture is named, was a distinguished graduate, successful entrepreneur, President of C.G.S. Industries Inc., loyal supporter of NYU, and the founding member of the NYU Stern Alumni Council. The Ashok Sani Scholar program shares Mr. Sani’s interest in ethics, truth, peace, compassion and the moral and social responsibilities of members of society with the NYU Stern community.

For more information, please email bsp@stern.nyu.edu