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Race In Texas

Decent Essays

Upon first observation of this cartoon, I notice the obvious that race is in question. Not just because the word is in the caption, but the characters depict this as well. Strapped down is a black man which represents the 109 executions of the 254 since 1976 according to The Death Penalty Information Center. The white character standing above him representing the majority white justice system of Texas. Not only is he asking if his race played a part by raising a hand that has been totally immobilized. I take this to mean that once a black man is in the system, the fairness he deserves is taken away because of the color of his skin. Without education and resources, it’s like being silenced. And to add insult to injury, the smirk on the officials …show more content…

You would think that would curb the killings, but it has not. The only time they were reviewed was to prevent public shaming. “Three hundred and sixty-one men were put to death by electrocution before Old Sparky was decommissioned, in 1977. The Legislature decided to retire the sturdy, high-backed, solid oak chair after a Dallas TV reporter named Tony Garrett filed a lawsuit along with the American Civil Liberties Union seeking permission to film executions and broadcast them to the public. When a federal judge in Dallas ruled in January 1977 that executions could indeed be televised, Texas lawmakers quickly moved to approve a new method that would be less offensive than electrocution”. (http://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/the-witness/).
So prior to this ruling, the Texas Justice System didn’t care how cruel and inhumane the executions were. So yes Texas has a taste for killing by way of state sanctioned executions.
The opposite argument is the penalize offenders who are convicted of crimes be sentenced to life in prison v. executing them. This would offer the opportunity for any new information that could exonerate the wrongly convicted a second day in court. If the death penalty is carried out on an innocent offender, that would be a travesty of

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