Allie Bernstein, 27
Killing to prove that killing is wrong—this is the ultimate contradiction in our so-called “civilized” society. The American legal system has grappled with the reality of the death penalty, also known as capital punishment, for almost 400 years. The first recorded execution in the United States took place in 1608 in the Jamestown colony, where a man named George Kendall was executed for alleged espionage. A firing squad took his life. From there on, at least 16,000 people have been killed in the United States due to the death penalty. A significant portion of them were wrongfully convicted due to lack of evidence and prejudices in court. It’s important to keep in mind that we will never truly know how many of the 16,000 were truly criminals or victims. Given this information, many Americans have explored the same question for years: Is the death penalty a justifiable form of punishment, or does it violate ethics and human rights? Although those who commit heinous crimes should be severely punished, the death penalty is an immoral and dangerous punishment for any criminal.
One major reason to abolish the death penalty is its violation of ethical principles. Taking the life of a person, even if that individual has committed crimes, is a breach of human rights. Those who support the death penalty are likely to argue that these criminals, who have probably violated other humans in horrific ways, deserve the punishment they are receiving. It is crucial to impress upon supporters of the death penalty that two acts of evil will never equate to a virtue.
Another idea that supports the death penalty is the belief that capital punishment can deter crime. However, there is no real evidence that shows the death penalty has ever discouraged a criminal from committing a crime. Let’s paint the picture of a hypothetical death row situation: Imagine if a mentally ill man fatally stabbed another man in what seems like a moment of rage. There was no premeditation, no history of violent crime—just a tragic lapse in cognitive control. This mentally ill man goes to court, the evidence of him stabbing the victim is shown, and his punishment is death by the electric chair. Years later, forensic evidence reveals that this man acted in self defense and shouldn’t have been on death row. Now, the death of this man is the fault of not only the jury, the judge, but is the fault of the American legal system. While this may just be a hypothetical situation, it is a reality. You could be wrongfully convicted and killed. Amnesty International, a human rights organization who advocates against human rights violations, wrote on their website, “Executing someone because they’ve taken someone’s life is revenge, not justice.” Should justice be based on morality or momentary vengeance that harms more? The 8th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits cruel and unusual punishments, and the death penalty is nowhere close to an appropriate discipline for any human. Capital punishment is an ongoing breach of the constitution, human rights, and morality that has not been completely eradicated yet. It is up to Americans as a whole to realize the true implications of killing criminals, and what it could mean for our society.
In addition to being immoral, the death penalty also poses direct dangers to those subjected to it. To start off, it is important to note that historically people of color are disproportionately affected by wrongful death sentences in the United States. Racial bias is ever present in this country, and has unfortunately taken many people’s lives when it comes to the death penalty. The National Registry of Exonerations found that black people are seven times more likely than white people to be wrongly convicted of murder. The black people accused of killing white victims are far more likely to receive the death penalty than a white person who killed someone of color. Along with this injustice, the execution methods for convicted criminals are extremely dangerous.
The most common way these people are killed is by lethal injection. While many people believe that poisoning criminals is the most humane way to end their lives, medical researchers have argued that there have been many botched executions that have resulted in extreme suffering. This suffering can be from inadequate anaesthesia, incorrect dosage amounts, and more. Other painful execution methods are being electrocuted to death, lethal gas, hanging, firing squad, and more. This once again relates back to the morality of the death penalty. No matter how atrocious their crimes were, that criminal is still a human being with rights. No one should be treated at such an inhumane level, despite how they treated others. Inflicting a painful death upon anyone should be a crime itself, so why does the government continue to allow the death penalty as a legal punishment? Jan Van Rooyen, a law professor, once said “The death penalty is a cheap way for politically inclined people to pretend to their fearful constituencies that something is being done to combat crime.” In other words, killing convicted criminals is an ‘out’ for the government to actually do their job. Instead of trying to eliminate the sources of the crime (poverty, mental health epidemic, gun violence, etc), they choose to end the lives of criminals. We, as citizens, are not safer just because these criminals are dead. We are equally protected if they face life in prison with no parole, but the government does not want to pay for the upkeep of prisons in America. From this perspective, the death penalty functions as a method of controlling prison populations.
To conclude, not only is the death penalty a flawed punishment, it is a moral failure that completely undermines the principles of justice and humanity. Choosing to end the life of another human is a grave decision and should never be taken lightly. Innocent people have been, and will continue to be executed under the system of capital punishment. The next wrongfully convicted person could be you, your best friend, your sibling, or your classmate. If we, as a society, value human rights and a fair justice system, we must demand an end to this unethical punishment. We must demand more government involvement in ending crime, not perpetuating it. The most important thing to remember is that it comes down to true justice. And, if the death penalty only prolongs oppression and suffering, can we really call it justice at all?