Assignment 4

I believe that Robert Pape and Charles Tilly make a good argument by stating that, “rather than being random violence, acts of terrorism have “close affinities with political struggle” and that “collective violence occupies a perilous but coherent place in contentious politics”.” As Pape points out, no one wants foreigners to occupy their country and change the way they do things. In response to foreign occupation people come together to try to take back their country. In Pape’s article he indicates that as the United States has been working aggressively to establish a Democracy in Iraq, attackers have increased terrorist activities. After the successful election that took place in Iraq attacker saw the event as a threat to their way of life and have been active in their terrorist activities.

The up rise in terrorist activity could well be considered a social movement. When the United States invaded Iraq the idea was to bring peace to the region and get rid of the threat of weapons of mass destruction. As the invasion took place the United States didn’t really know who the enemy was in the streets of Iraq. Many innocent people died in the line of fire. Would anyone not join the fight if an army came in and killed their father, their mother, their brother, or their sister? If the United States stays in Iraq and not pulls out terrorist activity is not going to end but get worst and the last Iraq election was a perfect example of that. As we push for stability in the region attackers will come together and try to push us out. In order for terrorist activity to cease in the region and around the world we will need to let them find solutions to their own problems. I’m not saying that we should allow the country to be run by terrorist but if there is to be any peace they will have to create a government that they are comfortable with and laws that their culture can accept and follow.

The United States used to be seen as pace keepers but by overrunning Iraq and other country’s all that we are seen as is invaders. No country would allow others to come in and take over their government. All that the attackers in the Middle East are doing is coming together in their own way to try to keep their way of life. The argument is quite sound and the terrorist attacks could well be considered a movement. The reason why many people would argue that it is not a movement could possibly be that their tactics are very radical, unethical, and acceptable by much of the world’s nations. Another reason why people might not want to consider it a movement is because the point of the invasion was to bring peace to the region and by not complying people just label them as extremist, terrorist, etc.

Freedom comes at a great cost but how much cost will country’s around the world have to endure before we realize that the solution does not come by forcing them to change their way of life. As Tilly indicates in his article “Freedom comes with bad news (Tilly, 4).” Pape and Tilly understand that attackers in the Middle East are struggling with opposing political views and the only way they are going to be successful in their movement is by using collective violence. Their radical movement is very extremist but as I have mentioned before, sometimes for a movement to keep moving forward is needs to use very radical tactics. Just as the gay rights movement used violence against police when they were conducting their raids, attackers are using violence against country’s who are opposed to their way of life.

In no way shape or form do I support the way attackers are using terrorist tactics to carry forward their plan but we also have to understanding why they would use radical tactics to drive out invaders and to continue living their way of life. Tilly understands that, “The correlations of misery and conflict do not result from a general propensity of poor people to lash out in violence. They arise from the tyrannies large and small that flourish in undemocratic regimes in which the state has limited capacity to act for the common benefit (Tilly, 5). It is unfortunate that in some country’s political regimes oppress and subdue their citizens. As a result it creates instability in the country and eventually wars among nations. To protect their rights, people often come together to form a movement, whether that movement is ethical or not it does not ignore the fact that the issue needs to be resolved.

Assignment 4

As the election in Iran ended many citizens rose up to dispute the election. Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had won the election but many citizens felt that the votes were somehow rigged. As the protests began cameras started rolling, pictures were being taken, blogs were being posted on the internet, and radio talk shows carried out the message to listener around the world. Immediately the world was aware of what was going in Iran. Through all the different media’s people began to get involved in the election. With different types of technology giving attention to the protest in Iran demonstrators, government, and people around the world were able to contribute for or against the protest.

Technology can play an important role in the face of social protests. The use of technology can either benefit or hurt a social protest by attracting the attention it needs to gain the support of more individuals or shy people away and dismantling their social network. Other times technology can mask the truth and prevent protestors from achieving justice. Technology has many advantages and disadvantages; it all depends on how it’s used. In the case of Iran’s election, protestors claimed that the election was rigged and they demanded a recount. Technology made it possible to get the attention of the world. In this case technology was able to make it easy for people around the world to see that there was a serious problem in Iran. It also made people aware that the country is still continues to have an unstable government where people still seek justice.

In the case of the protest in Iran, technology was put into use for people around the world to see the radical tactics that protestor are using against riot police. One source of technology that was used was video. In one video that came from the city of Tabriz in Iran it shows police running away from demonstrators. The video also shows police throwing tear gas onto the protestors to disperse the mob. The report indicates that because of the media blackout in Iran it is hard to understand what is really going on in the country since the riot took place outside the capitol. The Iranian regime used the video against demonstrators by indicating that the type of violence and protest going on is a plot set by western government and also the media. Other types of technology like internet articles were used by Iranian government to put the social movement. The Iranian ambassador used the media to discourage protestor by making public that protestors represented the minority of the public. He stated that, "the minority can't impose their opinion on the majority (Iran)." As can be seen this type of use of technology can impact social movements in a way that may prevent them from moving forward.

Another source of technology that was used to create a perspective of the social movement going on in Iran was photos. The photos used were published in the interest of the protestors. It showed protestors of different religions, beliefs, and socio-economic status coming together to protest against the alleged rigged election in which President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won. The pictures served to gain the support of individuals who thought it wasn’t their cause to fight. By seeing people of different religions, beliefs, and socio-economic status makes the social movement more inclusive and welcoming to people of different backgrounds.
In today’s social movement in Iran the use of technology in cases has either helped or hurt the protesters. The content of the media used can be interpreted in many ways. Technology allows not only good but also the bad to come out in public. How and when technology is used can either break or create change in society.

Without technology there would be less public support because of the lack of information going out to the public. Technology has made it possible to distribute information around the world and has made people aware of issues that may eventually affect their life. Social movements around the world depend on technology, with out it people would suffer injustice and the truth may never come out. During the movement against the election it was published that the leader of the opposition Mir Hossein stated that those responsible for electoral fraud" had sided with those behind the post-election violence "and spilled the blood of the people (Moussavi)." Statements like these published throught out different medias allows the opposition movement to let everyone know what is really going on and use that information as a source of recruitment.

The facilitation of technology made available to social movement has changed that way people carry out protests. The more attention protestors get the more public the issue becomes and the more attention they receive from the various types of media. The social movement in Iran to have a re-election attracted the attention of internet subscribers, radio stations, news broadcast stations, etc. around the world. Picture, videos, the internet, and telephone, etc. made it possible for protestors against the election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to gain the support of people from all around the country.




Moussavi maintains defiant stance
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/06/25/iran.election/index.html

Radical tactics against riot police in Iran
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/06/22/videos.iran/index.html

Iran Ambassador: Protestors represent a minority
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/06/24/iran.ambassador/index.html

Assignment 3

Civil disobedience has a long history in the United States and in other countries. It is a slower method of perhaps achieving parity for those who feel disadvantaged by the current prevailing policies or practices. In some ways, civil disobedience meets the critieria of making the agent of change the cause or issue rather than focusing on a person or a radical movement.

Radical tactics and practices tend to polarize positions and focus attention on the tactic/practice rather than the issue of disadvantage. It is much easier for those in opposition to proposed changes in culture or practice to hate or dismiss more radical tactics and the persons that carry them out. Radical tactics often inspire equal radicalism from an opposing faction. Radical tactics and practices make it easier for societies and their governments to justify force to maintain the status quo. Throughout history, when an idea or "solution" to a problem has been forced upon a society through fear or intimidation, change occurs only when the persons forcing the change continue to have the power to intimidate, imprision or even kill those in opposition.

Radical tactics and practices are extreme measures used in social movements to create change but sometimes it is the only way to achieve means to an end. As was seen during the gay rights movement, the only way to stop the police from conducting raids was for gay activist to riot against the police. Radical tactics and practices should never be seen as acceptable means to end but are sometimes necessary to create change. If we were to look at the bigger picture one could make the argument that it was acceptable for gay activist to riot against the police and start the movement otherwise many of the changes in laws in favor of gays and lesbians would not exist today. Violence is never the answer to a solution but some times circumstances require for radical tactics and practices.

Any highly emotional issue generally seems to breed both those who engage in civil disobedience and those who behave radically. Dr. King and Malcom X believed in opposite actions to achieve a comparatively common goal. It may be necessary for the radical behavior to bring an issue to the forefront of a society's consciousness. In other words, the "status quo" is often extremely difficult to interrupt. While radical actions often harm both the innocent as well as the perceived oppressors, the issue does tend to become more publicized and therefore more knowledge becomes more common. No change occurs without knowledge; positive changes occur with the understanding that comes from knowledge i.e. the discussions and debates that occur in every household and community and the experiences that are shared.

It seems that those who engage in civil disobedience may be able to take that knowledge of an issue or need however and then encourage the understanding that may then lead to positive change once the radicalism becomes less in the forefront of the movement. Their persistence in keeping the issue current and their ability to interact with their society without polarizing violence may eventually succeed, as occurred in South Africa with Dr. Mandella.
In summary, while there will always be those who favor a radical approach in support of an issue, real societal change does not occur until an understanding of an issue can occur and compromise can be reached. Short-term ocietal change can occur rapidly in response to violence. Long-term societal change takes much longer (witness Dr. Mandela's many years in prison) , but when it occurs the needs of both positions may be better reached with particular attention to beginning to address wrongs that may have occurred and achieving validation (witness Dr. Mandela's presidency).

assignment 3

As the death penalty movement takes its stand against capital punishment they often try to evoke deep emotions such as anger, empathy, and frustration to encourage their members to get more involved. They also use data like the, Why do Americans support the Death Penalty study to make society aware of the injustices happening in society, which often evokes anger from listeners. Another tactic they use is rallying the streets, demonstrating their concern towards those facing capital punishment. They try to provoke a sense of urgency for justice and humane treatment. Organizations also put forth information supporting their cause either to recruit or to mobilize members to protest and make their voices heard. Some of those organizations that put forth information supporting the abolishment of the death penalty to provoke feelings of anger, empathy, frustrations, etc. are the Friends Committee to Abolish the Death Penalty and the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. Evoking strong emotions is one of many strategies that the movements against the death penalty practices but without it the movement would fail to progress. To understand how emotions are evoked to gain support and retain members we can look at studies used by organizations that bring out such emotions.

In one study called, Why do Americans support the Death Penalty? the author Joe Soss studied the factors that contribute to why Caucasians support the death penalty in the United States. Some of the key factors that he explored were racial attitudes, individual-levels, and context. For his study he “employ[ed] survey data from the 1992 ANES and contextual data from the 1990 U.S. Census (Soss, p23).” One of the things the author did in his study was to include “an indicator of the black percentage of residents in each respondent's county. How might the local presence of African Americans affect white support for state executions? (Soss, p22).” The author found that the local presence of African Americans in the community does not decrease the support for death row by Caucasians. He also found that white people with higher income are more likely to support the death penalty than white people with lower income.

As can be seen from the study above, organizations use such data to make people aware that the system is biased and unfair towards minorities in the use of the death penalty. Once it is established that there is biased and unfairness in the system organizations are able to exploit that to their advantage. Organizations often exploit data by coming up with catchy phrases used in protests, by running ads from new data findings, and by excluding data that might criticize or harm the movement from progressing. As can be seen by using data and research organizations are often able to generate emotions such as anger towards those who seek unfair justice, empathy towards those who become victims of an unfair punishment, and frustration for the time it will take for every state to abolish the death penalty. This kind of data is often used to gain support from new recruits. The data is used to give substance to the movement and to show that it’s not just someone’s idea for justice, it is concrete evidence that can be passed along and facts, which makes perfect fuel to stir up emotions among people and gain their support. Along with the use of data, which is used more for recruitment than for retainment, organizations also put forth slogans and creative information that helps retain members, mobilize, and create excitement in the movement. It is always great to see people joining the movement and supporting the cause but organizations need to also retain those who currently supported. One of those organizations that is able to use information, slogans, and catchy phrases to their advantage is the Friends Committee to Abolish the Death Penalty.

The Friends Committee to Abolish the Death Penalty uses information to energize and mobilize the movement. They believe in “programs that address the root cause of crime while reorienting the criminal justice system toward rehabilitation rather than destruction.” The organization strongly believes that two wrongs don’t make a right, and instead of doing more harm, society should look forward to doing the right thing. The Friends Committee believes that “taking a life is beyond the authority of any human being...and ignores the human capability to change.” According to this organization, Death Row only teaches how much live is worth, rather than a lesson. There is always the possibility that a person might change for the better and make this world a better place. Like the saying goes, “a mind is a terrible thing to waste.”



Bright John. Friends Committee to Abolish the Death Penalty. “Friends Committee to Abolish the Death Penalty” http://www.quaker.org/fcadp/. 2000

Soss, Joe (2003). Why Do White Americans Support the Death Penalty? Journal of
Politics; May2003, Vol. 65 Issue 2, p397, 25p, 1

Assignment 2

Social movements can either be effective in changing ideas and beliefs in a given society or they can break apart and fail. There are many things that factor into whether or not a movement will be successful. Arguably one of those factors is the iconic figure of the movement. For example Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the iconic figures for the civil rights movement. Because of his race, education, background, etc. he was able to inspire minority groups to fight and rally for their civil rights. “King became a Baptist, the most popular religious affiliation for Black Americans, and identified himself with the historical continuum of the African-American freedom struggles (Carson, p3).” By having people like King leading the civil rights movement one has to ask whether or not his attributes had anything to do with the success of the movement. Would it have matter if King was white, if he had come from a poor family, if he wasn’t educated? Would the movement still have been successful? Do certain attributes in a leader alienate others from following and is it even possible for some one to lead a successful movement regardless of his color and background?

If I was to create an iconic figure to lead the civil rights movement it would have to be some one of a mixed race, probably an Afro-Hispanic woman. By having her being Afro-Hispanic it would probably attract more minorities. During the civil rights movement the majority of participants were African American, although there were other ethnic minority participants they weren’t substantial. With today’s growing Hispanic and African American population in the United States an effective civil rights movement leader of African American and Hispanic descent would attract a very large population. This large population unified would able to create change in government, politics, in the work force, and across many other sectors.

Even more, by having an iconic woman figure it would help attract not just minority woman but also woman of all ethnicities. One such example was seen during the 2008 presidential election when John McCain elected Sarah Palin to run for vice president. Palin was able to draw many women to support her and McCain. Before accepting to run for vice president many critics believed that McCain had no chance to compete against Barack Obama. After Sarah Palin joined the campaign many critics and the media glorified how she had revived McCain’s chances to win the Election.

Other attributes that would help generate more support for my ideal iconic figure would be for her to be liberal, Christian, and be between 35-45 years old. She would have to be liberal because the civil rights movement was about change and embracing a new philosophy. She would also have to religious because the majority of the people in the United States believe in Christ in some way or another. Last but not least she would have to be between the ages of 35-45. At this age she is still young enough to relate to younger adults and she would be old enough to make wise and intelligent decisions that would affect how the movement progresses. Overall, I believe the attributes mentioned above would greatly help my ideal iconic figure to lead a successful civil rights movement.

Some of the pitfalls of having such iconic figure leading the civil rights movement would be the alienation of certain groups. Some Caucasians, Asians, or other ethnicities might not support my iconic figure because she is not of their ethnic background. Men of all backgrounds might also turn away simply because she is a woman and by supporting her would be like accepting loss of power in a men dominated society. Her age and religion might also turn away some people; they may think that she is too young and that she may not be wise enough to lead a movement. Also, by her being Christian she might lose out on the support from those who are Muslims or those who don’t believe in religion.

As can be seen, having the perfect iconic figure to lead a movement can become a difficult task. It is amazing to think of how many movements would have had different results if they were lead by different people. For example, if Claudette Colvin would have spearheaded the Montgomery Bus Boycott instead of Rosa Parks things might not have been the same. In my opinion Claudette Calvin may not have gathered enough support to lead the boycott. She did not have the support of the middle class. In an interview Ms. Colvin mentioned, “they didn’t want me because I didn’t represent the middle class (Hendrickson, p2)." If Ms. Colvin was the one to lead the boycott it may have been seen as the problem of the poor. Colvin was also seen as too unstable. Never the less, Rosa Parks seemed to represent a larger population, which helped her spear the boycott. Unfortunately Ms. Colvin may not have been able to gather the support needed to lead the way to create change.



Carson, Clayborne. The Unfinished dialogue of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X

Hendrickson, Paul. The Ladies Before Rosa:Let Us Now Praise Unfamous Women

Assignment 2

The struggle to abolish the death penalty in the United States has been long, yet it still has the support of people and the movement continues today because of how the issue has been framed. Supporters against the death penalty have framed the issue around the value of a human life but we also have to look at other types of frames that have made the movement progress through time. According to Snow and Benford (1998) there are three types of framing necessary for the death penalty movement to be successful and they are diagnostic, prognostic, and motivational framing. Supporters of the death penalty have framed the issue diaognostically. They have gained the support and recruited others by convincing them that death penalty needs to be addressed because it’s immoral, unreliable, and cruel and unusual. Supporters of the movement have also framed the issue prognostically by targeting the laws and policies, politicians, states that carry out executions, and others. The movement also has tactics and strategies such as mobilizing their supporters by conducting rallies and protests all over the United States when their voice needs to be herd. Last, the movement has framed the problem motivationally. Supporters of the movement motivate groups to carry out demonstrations when state laws change, or when individual are going to be executed, or when they need to be herd; such as during election time.

In comparison to the death penalty movement the frame of the pro-life movement has similarities and differences. One such similarity is that it’s also framed around the value of life. The pro-life movement holds ground that procedures and actions such as abortions and contraceptives are unethical and cruel. In addition the movement targets the judicial systems, politicians, and states that allow abortions. The movement also tries to motivate individuals to carry out protest in efforts to make abortions illegal and to deny minors access to such things like contraceptives without parent permission. There are great similarities between the death penalty and pro-life movement but there are small differences in frame. One of those differences is that pro-life is more radical, they are not just opposed to abortion they are also opposed to anything that may hinder the ability for a human life to flourish. In comparison, opponents of the death penalty are not against life in prison, rehabilitation, or other methods of a prisoner carrying out his/her sentence.

Another movement we can compare in frame to the death penalty movement is the environmental movement. One of the similarities is that they are both framed around protecting individuals but in a larger perspective through the protection of the environment. Both movements target to change laws and policies. They gain support through protests and focus on ethical problems. Another similarity is that movement has incredible mobility not just in the United States but around the world. One of the differences in frame is that the environmental movement is more radical. The movement has shifted, supporters are not just interested in protecting the wild life, preserving the countryside, or buildings; they are now looking to make changes in “growing threats to the environment and the exhaustion of materials…” and among other aspects that in the environment through violent protests such as the one in “the opening of the Tokyo airport (Goodwin & Jasper 75, 82).” Another difference is that most people who join the movement are already aware of the problem that exists in the environment. In comparison, the movement against the death penalty has always had a clear focus and that is to abolish the death penalty.

By comparing and contrasting the death penalty movement to other social movements we are able to learn the importance that it serves in society and how the movement has progressed. Unlike some social movements the movement to abolish the death penalty has no recognizable face like Rosa Parks or Cindy Sheehan but what it does have are organization such as the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty who have made it possible for the movement to progress through time. These and other organizations carry out protests, have websites supporting the abolition of the death penalty, and have continually worked in creating a framework for recruiting and retention as mentioned above. Some of the main supporters of the movement against the death penalty are the Catholic Church, minorities in their 30’s, lower middle class, and men and women alike. Even though there are many intersectionalities present in the movement such as gender, age, and race people still come together for the cause of protecting a human life. Some of the problems that these intersectionalities may present is when to protest and how aggresive they need to be depending on the issue at hand. One of the problems with having a diverse group is that some people may be excluded such as Caucasian since the mojority of individuals who are executed are predominatly African American and Hispanics. The only to insure for the movement to be more inclusive is to reach out to all ethnicities, genders, socioeconomic classes, and to as many people as possible to join the fight against the death penalty.

Assignment 1

In every society there are individuals who criticize what they don’t like. To be herd these individuals sometimes come together as one and organize themselves to create a social movement. As these groups of people move forward to reach their goals they often find peaceful measures to achieve it. Other times in order to create change in society or in policy there are others who seem to think that they need to resort to extreme measures and even violence. The struggle between radicalism and assimilation during social movements can either push a movement forward or break the movement. These struggles can be seen in movements such as the anti-Vietnam war movement, the women’s movement, the gay rights movement, and the Chicano protest movement.

In the anti-Vietnam war movement many people shared the same idea against fighting the war in Vietnam. Some groups like the Students for Democratic Society (SDS) held peaceful demonstrations in Washington; others held “congressional lobbying, [and] electoral challenges (Wells).” While other groups felt the same way towards the war they resorted to more extreme radical measures like civil disobedience and political violence. As the war in Vietnam continued the movement against the war gained more and more supporters. It got to the point where some people began to wonder if the Vietnam War was worth the split in society. Eventually troops were withdrawn and the draft was ended. The anti-Vietnam war movement was one of the most successful protests because they all had the same common goal but demonstrator across the country always had conflicting ideas about how to carry out their protest. Never the less, through peaceful and violent protest the people created change and reached their goal.

In the women’s movement in the 1960’s many women where fed up being treated like second class citizens. They protested together in non violent groups demanding support for the equal rights amendment. Women also wanted to make it a point that violence against women was unacceptable. By coming together as one woman were able to gain political posts, access to better education, and an equal opportunity in the job industry. As can be seen in this movement, working together and coordinating protest whether peaceful or radical makes it easier and more affective for voices to be herd.

In the gay rights movement the protest began out of discrimination and brutality when police raided gay establishments in New York in 1969 (Goodwin and Jasper, 36). As the raids continued a gay riot was started and violence broke out. This and other events led many gay men and women to come together and eventually form the gay rights movement. Many gay rights groups thought of themselves as radicals. They formed protests and when confronted with police officials many demonstrations turned bloody. Other times gay militants followed politicians and jumped in front of cameras to carry out their message. Even though the gay rights movement started out very radical, many gay men and women came together for the purpose of improving their quality of life and bring about change in the way there are viewed in society.

Moving on to the Chicano protest movement, it began as a protest through out universities. The movement called for the admission of minorities and people of color and to establish Chicano studies programs. The movement moved forward as Chicano activist took seats in school boards, as they protested along side the Black civil rights movement, and by forming organizations such as the National Association of Chicana and Chicano Scholars. The need to assemble an organization to fight for better education, higher economic/political status, and equal rights brought them together and has proven beneficial to their cause and progress.

After looking at all these movements and also others where Dr. King Jr. and Malcolm X were involved, I don’t believe one strategy is more valid than the other. In both cases, whether it was a peaceful movement or a more radical one, what mattered was not how they carried out the demonstration; it was the purpose of the demonstration and the significance of it. One example was the gay rights movement. The movement was radical, yet it appealed to many who were gay and convinced them that it was an important issue to fight for. Another example to prove my point was Chicano protest movement. The movement was very civil, Chicano’s and Chicana’s brought about change through activist in universities and through many peaceful protests for equality.

In the article, The Unfinished Dialogue of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X. by Clayborne Carson, he argues that the position of Malcolm X. and Dr. King were reconcilable. I believe that statement is correct to an extent. Both Dr. King and Malcolm X shared the same common goal but the difference was the way they were going to achieve their purpose. In Dr. King’s view, if change was to come it was going to come through peaceful demonstrations and by obeying the law. In Malcolm X’s view change needed to be demanded and taken at all cost. They both knew that with more support from people change would come but because of their differences in the way they carried out protests they were unable to cooperate with each other and form a stronger movement. One thing Malcolm X could have done differently would have been to stop insulting Dr. King’s method of protesting. On the other hand one thing Dr. King could have done differently is to get passed the insults and cooperate in peaceful demonstration when Malcolm X asked for his support. In either case if each one could see pass their own issues and looked at the bigger picture there could have reconciled their differences and come together as one.



Foot Note:

Goodwin, J. & Jasper, J. M. (2009). The Social Movement Reader: Cases and Concepts. The Atrium, Southern Gate,Chichester, West Sussex. Blackwell Publishing.

Wells, Tom. (1999). The Oxford Companion to American Military History. Oxford UP.

Assignment 1

To begin an understanding of why the social movement to abolish the death penalty began lets trace back to the early 5th Century B.C. when death penalty meant that you could be crucified, burnt alive, beaten to death, boiled, or impaled. As ages passed society began to implement less barbaric punishment such as decapitation, hanging, electric chair, the gas chamber, and now lethal injection. In the United States the social movement for the abolition of the death penalty began in the late 1700 century, although the roots of this movement began with people like Voltaire, John Bellers, and Cesare Beccaria’s from the famous essay, On Crimes and Punishment. As the social movement against the death penalty gained popularity in the early 1800’s many states began to reduce the number of capital punishment for which individuals could be executed. In 1838 the first state to use discretion in an execution was enacted by Tennessee.

One of the key events that affected the progress of the social movement to abolish the death penalty in the United States was the progressive period from 1907 to 1917. During this period six States completely abolished the death penalty and three other States limited the crimes to which individuals could be sentenced to death. During the progressive period there was an effort to remove moral wrong from society, one which was the death penalty. This period was aimed at improving society, removing corruption, and solving problems by establishing fairness and equality, not just in the movement against the death penalty but among other issues.

Another key event that affected the progress of the social movement to abolish the death penalty was the 1958 Supreme Court case Trop v. Dulles. In this case the Supreme Court decided that the Eighth Amendment stated that as societies mature and evolve a standard of decency should be met. As a result, in later years the death penalty was seen by many as cruel and unusual. Society needed to change and evolve and set new standards of decency and that meant that society needed to get away from implementing the death penalty as a source of punishment. In another case known as the Furman v. Georgia, it was presented that capital punishment resulted in subjective and unreliable sentencing. It was also presented that under the Eighth Amendment capital punishment was cruel and unusual. As a result in 1972 the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Furman and stated that if a jury is given complete discretion over sentencing capital cases it meant that it could result in arbitrary sentencing and therefore could be constituted as cruel and unusual punishment.

A third key event that affected the progress of the social movement to abolish the death penalty was the creation of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (NCADP) in 1976. This coalition was created in response to the decision made by the Supreme Court case Gregg v. Georgia, which allowed States to continue to carry out executions. The (NCADP) consists of advocates dedicated to abolish the death penalty not just in the United States but around the world. The creation of the (NCADP) has been leading the fight to abolish the death penalty. They have recently accomplished ending the death penalty against juveniles in the United States and combating reinstatement efforts by the State of Wisconsin to resurrect the death penalty.

Using mass society theory, the social movement of the death penalty might be described as a movement of individuals who lost hope in the system of justice. This movement likely ascended from a lost of confidence in the judicial system to carry out fair and just punishment. As there were no other establishments for groups of individuals to raise their voices from, the establishment of the social movement to abolish the death penalty was created in order for individuals to find a voice where their opinions and concerns could be herd.

Using rational approaches such as resource mobilization and political process theory the social movement of the death penalty might be described as an organized movement consisting of formal organizations such as the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. These organizations have the ability to mobilize the movement forward by raising money, by using resources available to them, by appealing to influential leaders/groups, and by demanding change through laws and policies.

Using cultural and emotional approaches, the social movement of the death penalty might be described as a movement that consists of the idea that capital punishment is cruel and unusual. This belief wants everyone to recognize that we as a society have evolved to be civil and punishments such as the death penalty are barbaric. It is imperative that the movement creates the image that capital punishment is brutal, vicious, and unreliable as it is one of the bases that drives the social movement forward.

The best explanation that seems to explain the social movement of the death penalty is both the rational and cultural/emotional approach. First, individuals need to create the image that the death penalty is cruel, unusual, and unreliable. Once this is established in order for the movement to continue and grow it needs to organize, find resources, raise money, and appeal to others. In today’s society the social movement to abolish the death penalty has all these elements and that is why it continues to be a movement that might not ever end until the death penalty is completely abolished.

The Death Penalty

Who decides if a person should live or die, and what gives them the right to make that choice? Death Row is an issue that deals with many aspects of freedom. Like in all issues Death Row has its pro and con critics. Unfortunately, while the critics argue Death Row, there are victims that die, some that are innocent of the crime they never committed. Many different issues surround this topic from all different angles. Some people feel that it is immoral and people should not play with the lives of others. Others think that the death penalty is justified because it serves as a way for people to think twice about whatever wrong they might have to commit. Non-the less, Death Row should be banned until it is reliable but until then, society should not play god with the lives of others.

Texas Executes Again

Current Protest: Texas Executes Man in 2001 Murders

URL: http://topics.breitbart.com/death+penalty/