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

See all articles by Michael Conklin

Michael Conklin

Angelo State University - Business Law; Texas A&M University School of Law

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

Suggested Citation

Conklin, Michael, A Stretch Too Far: Flaws in Comparing Slavery and the Death Penalty (2019). A Stretch Too Far: Flaws in Comparing Slavery and the Death Penalty, DENVER L. REV. FORUM, 2019, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3592083

Michael Conklin (Contact Author)

Angelo State University - Business Law ( email )

United States

Texas A&M University School of Law ( email )

Tarrant County
United States

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