Abolish the Death Penalty

It was November 2 of 1998 and I woke up that morning and to my surprise the television was on. I see my mother sitting there watching CNN and saying how wrong the death penalty was as she was watching John Stevinson be put to death. She said how cruel these people were for doing such a thing. I remember feeling that I didn’t know what was wrong with these people and now I realize how wrong killing really is. For one to commend a crime and loose so much in return proves no point and yet an infantile result to a critical problem one of which is so multifaceted and out thought is just morally and corruptly erroneous.

To the surprise of many, the United States government does not only put to death adults but also minors. In the United States at least 160 children have been executed by the death penalty since 1973. Children shouldn’t have the same punishments as an eighteen year old. First off, there is a possibility of rehabilitating minors greater than the adults. Children may still need to be punished, but taking a child’s life for making a wrong, stupid, and a bad decision just isn’t right. Members of the government should consider how they would punish their own child, especially if they were mentally challenged or had some other unique circumstance. Two out of three kids sent to death row are children of a different gender and or race. This is a big example of racism and discrimination. Not only kids are treated this way but also the adults. Out of all the 160 minors, executed, only two were girls, which is another example of discrimination against boy.

Religion is yet another big part when it comes to the death penalty. Many people who believe in it mustn’t know what the Bible says about death and killing. This is murder and the Bible says no to ANY slaughter. In the Bible, the 5th Commandment states that, “Thou shall not kill.” As a Christian I believe in the 5th Commandment and see that killing doesn’t make better, yet worse. It’s massacre! If one kills another, no matter what reason, nor excuse, you are murdering them by just clearly taking their life.

The Bible also has a story on the saying, “Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.