University of York Amnesty International launched a campaign against the death penalty yesterday with a protest on Vanbrugh paradise.
The action is the first in a series of events this week, including a screening of the ‘Life of David Gale’ – a feature film which explores the debates surround capital punishment – this evening on campus.
The protest included students wearing the flags of the greatest enforcers of the death penalty – including Iran, the USA and India – whilst covering their faces with the mask of Reggie Clemons, a controversial death row inmate in the United States.
Reggie Clemons was sentenced to death in Missouri as an accomplice to a 1991 murder of two young white women. Since his conviction allegations have arisen of police coercion, prosecutorial misconduct, and a ‘stacked’ jury in the Clemons case. Despite lingering doubts and numerous appeal attempts, Missouri still plans to execute Clemons, possibly within the year.
Those involved in the protest explained to Vision the reason why they were highlighting the death penalty issue so centrally in Amnesty’s platform this year.
Lucia Linares, a key organiser of the protest, said “it is absurd to think in this modern age such contentious cases and obvious miscarriages of justice can occur. Even in legal systems where the death penalty is enshrined it is always a last resort, so any attempts to possibly execute someone when there are doubts over their guilt need to stopped and I think all students should have a voice on this issue.”
Fellow demonstrator and third year Politics student Katie Stanton had stronger remarks, lambasting the death penalty as “utterly barbaric” and saying “it goes against the laws of human nature, or the laws of most Gods if you believe. There simply isn’t an excuse for it that I can rationalise and the more voices that stand up against it the more chance we have of preventing its continuation worldwide – and that is what Amnesty is trying to do.”
Amnesty are continuing to raise awareness of the death penalty and a series of other issues – including women’s rights in Pakistan – in events throughout the term. You can find more information on the death penalty and sign petitions by going to Amnesty’s online webpage.