‘The system is broken—stop executions!’

Hundreds of energized people marched down Congress Avenue in downtown Austin Oct. 28, led by the family members of two executed men who have now been proven innocent after investigations by the Chicago Tribune over the last few years.

7th Annual March to Stop Executions, Oct. 28. Photo: Gislaine Williams

Chanting “Texas says ‘Death Row,’ We say ‘Hell no!,’” the protesters participated in the seventh annual March to Stop Executions in Texas, the state that accounts for 377 out of the 1,053 U.S. executions that have taken place since the U.S. death penalty was reinstated in 1976.

Before the march began, activists surrounded Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s mansion and then gathered for a short rally in front of the house. The mother of Todd Willingham and the sister of Carlos de Luna were warmly welcomed by the crowd as they recounted how their loved ones died despite their innocence. Trying to hold back tears, Mary Arredondo said that her family always knew her brother was innocent but, because they were poor, there was nothing they could do to help him.

Todd Willingham’s family drove from Oklahoma. His mother, Eugenia Willingham, said, “I am so glad we came all this way. For the first time I feel like people are with our family and they support and understand what we have been through.

“For so many years, not only was my son vilified after being accused of burning down his house with his children inside, but I was, too. I was called an unfit mother for raising a monster who could kill his children. Now technology has proven that the fire was an accident, that Todd had nothing to do with it.”

The families of the two men left the governor a letter asking that their loved ones’ cases be reopened and investigated. Armed guards told the families the governor was not home but refused to take the envelopes for him. The families then dropped them inside the wrought iron fence, in front of the guards.

A rally at City Hall featured the mothers of two innocent men now on death row: Sandra Reed, mother of Rodney Reed; and Lee Greenwood, mother of Joseph Nichols-Bey. Both appealed for continued support for their innocent sons and thanked activists for their efforts.

Prisoner Howard Guidry spoke to the crowd via a recording. His capital murder conviction was thrown out and he is currently in the Houston county jail awaiting a new trial. Guidry thanked the crowd for being there, saying, “I can hear the pounding of your feet on the pavement. Your voices pierce the walls of my confinement. Your determination to end the death penalty strengthens my resolve and gives me hope that one day I will be free.

“Please support the hunger strike by death row prisoners Steve Moody and the others to protest the inhumane conditions on death row. Stand up for Rob Will, Kenneth Foster and the others in the D.R.I.V.E. Movement whose activism is a constant on death row. Continue to fight. Keep your fist in the air. We will win!”

Other speakers included European activist Sandrine Ageorges, who visits men on Texas death row several times a year.

At the rally, Texas Moratorium Network member Allison Deiter organized the signing of holiday cards for the men and women on death row that the Texas Death Penalty Abolition Movement sends every year. The cards were taken back to Houston for more signatures to be added later.

Njeri Shakur, a Houston activist with the Abolition Movement, summed up the event: “The day was exhilarating for the young and the experienced activists alike. There were sad stories of innocents being executed and of pending executions, yet there was such an air of optimism and energy, that most left feeling ready for another year of battle against state killing. With the families of those on death row and the dedicated activists in the community working together, I know we will win.”

For information on the death row hunger strike, go to www.anarchyinchains.com. For other information, see www.drivemovement.org, or www.howardguidry.com.