First of all, I just can't believe the state of Georgia is going to execute Troy Davis at 7:00 this evening. Troy Davis is a man incarcerated in Georgia for murdering a policeman. There are lots of questions about his conviction, the most pressing one being the fact that SEVEN of the NINE non-police witnesses against him have recanted or contradicted the stories they told in court. I read something that said they recanted by affidavit, which doesn't carry a lot of weight, since they were not able to be cross-examined. OK, but the legal maneuverings should not outweigh the fact that 7/9, or 78% of the witnesses against this man have changed their stories. It seems to me that 78% is more than reasonable doubt. We let a woman kill her child and she gets off because there's "reasonable doubt," even though everyone knows she did it. We let white guys accused of killing childrren get out of prison. It's unlikely they did it, but justice prevailed.
So why doesn't justice prevail for Troy Davis? Is there not the same degree of doubt regarding his case as there was regarding the case of the West Memphis Three?
I read a FOP website that attempts to discredit the cries for justice for Troy Davis. You can find it here. It's so lame that I don't need to comment on it. The logic in the first one is interesting, though. They say "None of the recantations listed by Davis supporters state that Davis did not murder Officer MacPhail." Um, guys? Just because no one said he didn't murder the Officer, that doesn't mean he DID murder the officer. Think about it: No one said I didn't murder Officer MacPhail. According to the logic presented here, the FOP seems to think that would be sufficient grounds for executing me. What in the world?!?!
I'm concerned with the State of Georgia and the popular media about to execute a man who may be innocent. I'm also concerned with America's potential crucifixion of our current President. It's like everyone has just turned on the guy. Let's see... so he's tried to cross the aisle and make concessions to the hate-mongerers, and hasn't been a jerk about it. For that he's perceived as being weak and ineffective? Huh?!?!?
All of which brings me to this: where are our prophetic voices? I see some, but not a lot, of Christian folk talking about this Troy Davis affront. Why is the church not speaking out against a perceived injustice? Why are our pulpits not sounding the alarm that a black man is about to be killed in the American legal system, despite hundreds of thousands of people crying out that there is reasonable doubt? Even if there are doubts about Troy Davis personally, where is the cry against capital punishment? Against cruel and unusual punishment? Against oppressive regimes? Why do we embroil ourselves in nonessential stuff like what color shirt or tie or robe or stole we'll wear and ignore this fundamental assault on our human lives?
I'm at work now and will have to come back to this. But I just have to speak on it, even if my thoughts are not coherent or well-organized.
3 comments:
I appreciate this post Cassandra - well written and insightful. Thanks!
Full ACK. The whole drawn-out procedure during the murder of Troy Davis was really atrocious, the Supreme Court's prolonged silence, all that (not being American myself, I'd rather not go any further on the fundamental question of death penalty per se here).
But as to the right wing's hounding the President with total disregard as to the true state of the country -- I just don't understand you guys, why you let them get away with this. I was among the 250,000 cheering his speech here in Berlin in 2008, way before his election, so happy in the hope of bringing the grim Bush years to an end (almost losing my sympathy for the American people in the process: ok, the first term was the result of blatant fraud -- but then you went and elected him again right away??? How bitter to see the way America had then squandered the immense international sympathy following the September events you so vividly describe).
But then, a black man as US President -- wow, that's reason for hope that you can put your divisions aside! Enter the GOP, aside from pushing ignorance (as scientist, I find it hard to believe what's being touted as truth there) and big-oil/big energy cronyism, oblivious to the plights of, say, home owners or college students in their myopic class war for the rich, united in one goal and one goal only: get that n...er out of the White House!
I do hope you keep your spirits up, as you try to convince yourself in the last paragraph, that the fundamentals your country was founded upon be restored, opressive snooping giving way to the restoration of civil liberties -- the civilized world needs a strong and just America.
Ulrich,
Berlin-Germany, Ye Olde Europpe (up yours, Rumsfeld)
oops - the last paragraph relates to your previous post
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