This letter from Sister Helen Prejean is positively stellar. Writing to the California Department of Corrections on a recent proposal, she made wonderfully and graphically clear how depraved we can be as humans. She urged California to
KEEP THE WINDOW OPEN during the administration of the poisonous chemicals and as the person is dying as well as after the person has been killed, as the medical professional verifies the death and as the corpse is put into a body bag and removed. Do not conceal any part of the killing process, and do not hide the identity of the personnel who carry out the killing, including the medical personnel. If we feel no need to protect the identity of legislators who have enacted death as punishment on the statute books or district attorneys who seek and secure death sentences, or juries who sentence people to die or judges who pronounce sentence, why do we hide the identity of those who carry out the killing, including those who concoct and administer the lethal chemicals and the medical personnel who supervise the proceedings?
As I said, this is stellar. Take a read of the letter. It will only take a few minutes to complete, and will cause (hopefully) a lot more time of contemplation and action. Here’s the link to her letter.
Thanks to Mike for the link.
