A Stretch Too Far: Flaws in Comparing Slavery and the Death Penalty
A Stretch Too Far: Flaws in Comparing Slavery and the Death Penalty, DENVER L. REV. FORUM, 2019
10 Pages Posted: 1 Jun 2020
Date Written: 2019
Abstract
The impacts of racial discrimination on the use of the death penalty in the United States has been a frequent subject of study and debate. While much has been written regarding how slavery and racial biases have influenced the death penalty, the relationship between the abolition movements fighting to end slavery and the death penalty remains less explored. In his book, Slavery and the Death Penalty: A Study in Abolition, Bharat Malkani explores the similarities and differences between the two movements. This Article provides an overview of the book’s analysis of the two movements and discusses some of the book’s shortcomings, including its false equivalence on the issue of dignity, its factual inaccuracies, and its lack of discussion addressing counterarguments.
Keywords: Capital Punishment, Death Penalty, Slavery, Abolition, Bharat Malkani, Eighth Amendment Slavery and the Death Penalty, Willie Horton, Life Without Parole, Cruel and Unusual Punishment
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