May 19, 2014 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us
Genocidal realities: Death Row
In speaking to the situation facing Black and Latino people in the U.S.—the mass incarceration and school-to-prison pipeline, the criminalization and demonization of a whole generation of youth, the overt or just-below-the-surface racism prevalent in society, etc.—Carl Dix of the Revolutionary Communist Party has said what is taking place is a slow genocide that could easily become a fast genocide. This regular feature highlights aspects of this slow genocide.
Question: What do you call a society where a court can sentence someone to death in part because they are Black?
Answer: The USA.
In 1997, a Texas jury sentenced Duane Buck to death in part because a psychologist had testified that he was more likely to be violent in the future because he is Black.
And even when the reasoning is not that blatant, the numbers tell the story. Texas is the death penalty capital of AmeriKKKa. "Since 1976, Texas has carried out more executions than six other states combined—Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Missouri, Oklahoma and Virginia—all of which have some of the busiest death chambers." ("Confronted on Execution, Texas Proudly Says It Kills Efficiently," New York Times, May 12, 2014) Who do you think fills death row in Texas? Black people make up 12.3 percent of the population of Texas, yet 41.6 percent of prisoners on death row in Texas are Black.
And no it's not just Texas. Black people are 26.5 percent of the population of Alabama, but 50.3 percent of the people on Alabama's death row are Black. And no, it's not just the South. Black people are 11.4 percent of the population of Pennsylvania, but 53.9 percent of Pennsylvania's death row population is Black. 30.6 percent of people executed in Oklahoma since 1976 have been Black. The population of Oklahoma is 7.6 percent Black.
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