Where's the justice?
Published Mar 2, 2005 3:29 PM
Has the U.S. Supreme Court suddenly decided to embrace justice? In a March 1
ruling, the court found that executing someone for a crime committed when that
person was a minor is "cruel and unusual punishment."
There had been no
"moral values" preachings from the White House pulpit before this ruling against
the execution of children. Fox News hadn't put their screamers on the
case.
So what happened?
Maybe the public disclosures of the brutal
torture of prisoners by the Pentagon and CIA have brought too much worldwide
attention to the U.S. prison system. The torture of prisoners of war--and they
are prisoners of war even if the White House and Pentagon want to say that they
aren't--is after all a mirror that reflects the abuse of prisoners inside the
United States. And some--political prisoners like Mumia Abu-Jamal and Leonard
Peltier--are given the "special treatment."
The U.S. has been the only
industrialized country in the world to openly execute anyone for crimes
committed while under the age of 18. It has been in clear violation of all
international law. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights says
plainly that the "sentence of death shall not be imposed for crimes committed by
persons below 18 years old." The Convention on the Rights of the Child says the
same thing.
So the Supreme Court ruling ends a blatant violation of
international law. There are 72 juveniles whose lives were immediately saved by
this ruling.
But the ruling admits a little to cover up something even
bigger. There are almost 4,000 people on death row in the U.S., more than in any
other country in the world and in all history. The death penalty itself is
considered to be a crime against humanity under the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights of 1948.
The death penalty must be stopped altogether. Not
just because most on U.S. death row may actually be completely innocent. DNA
testing on death row inmates in Illinois immediately turned up 13 innocent
victims of the U.S. "justice" system. The Republican governor had to announce a
moratorium on executions.
The majority of those on death rows in the
United States are Black and Latino and a greater majority of them are poor. The
racist and classist U.S. "justice system" is the real crime and there can be no
real justice until it is abolished altogether.
Articles copyright 1995-2012 Workers World.
Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire article is permitted in any medium without royalty provided this notice is preserved.
Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011
Email:
[email protected]
Subscribe
[email protected]
Support independent news
DONATE