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fered the authority and the right to manufacture charges of conspiracy, treason and crime.
One of the most brilliant aspects of our Constitution is its provision for an orderly, legal succecession. Similarly, our Bill of Rights touches on the many ways the State might accuse, hold and punish with death the often defenseless citizen. For instances, both free speech and the practice of religion have often been deemed treasonous and hence appropriate reasons for execution, as we have recently seen in China.
Upholding our civil rights and liberties has been an iffy thing throughout U.S. history and we are fortunate to have been preceeded by many who worked hard to do that.
It is true that our Bill of Rights did not outlaw the death penalty, but that is not surprising for a society that accepted slavery, and that at its inception excluded more than half of its citizens from rights of participation.
Is it really the business of human beings to kill others?
According to the Bible, the first death was a murder, Cain killing Abel. However, God did not kill Cain, and according to the Biblical account, we are all his descendants. And it is from the Old Testament that most of us initially learn of the evil of murder, the Commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” Then, from Jesus, we hear, “Let him without sin cast the first stone. ”
Most modem, representative states have outlawed the death penalty. Official killing characterizes dictatorships and fundamentalist religious societies where other cruel and unusual punishments are also meted out.
I urged all those who advocate legalized, official murder to imagine a situation in which a close friend or relative is condemned to death and one in which the advocate has the responsibility to perform the execution. Our society must not require us to dehumanize the criminal, the executioner, or ourselves.
DIANA BIRD
Washington
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