Yesterday, I got an email from Amnesty International calling for strong and visible action in support of Troy Davis‘ plea to not be executed without a fair trial. I’m just going to go ahead and repost the whole thing below:
The 30-day stay issued by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals expires on May 15th.
So now is the time for us to organize to save the life of Troy Anthony Davis. We’re asking everybody to come out strong on May 19th – a day marked in human rights calendars across the world as the Global Day of Action for Troy Davis.
Whether you’re holding a “Text TROY to 90999″ sign on a busy street or organizing your local Amnesty chapter to hold a public demonstration or vigil, we need everybody to contribute their time on May 19th to make sure that the state of Georgia does not kill a man who may well be innocent. Register your Global Day of Action for Troy Davis activity or event now.
We know that time is short for organizing public events, but an execution date could be set as early as late May, so it is essential that action be taken soon. It’s also really important that we get an accurate count of how many events and activities are taking place on May 19th, so we can share this information with officials in Georgia. Our emails and phone calls have gone a long way in buying Troy some much-needed time, but now we’ve got to take our action to the streets.
We appreciate the tens of thousands of you who have stood in Troy’s corner while heart-stopping scenes have unfolded. On three separate occasions, Troy has been scheduled for execution. And on three separate occasions, his life was saved within a short period of time, even minutes, of his scheduled execution date.
Each time, those last minute stays came after people like you turned out by the thousands to rally in his defense. It was no coincidence. Troy’s sister and long-time Amnesty activist, Martina Correia, has acknowledged Amnesty’s powerful role in saving her brother’s life each of those times.
Now here we are again with the clock winding down. While we can see little opportunity for legal recourse or second chances, we know that your advocacy has a strong record of making amazing things happen.
When we first introduced you to Troy Davis in early 2007, few people outside of Georgia knew about the injustice taking place. In the past two years, countless people have come to see Troy’s case as a prime example of why the death penalty must be abolished – the risk of executing someone for a crime they did not commit is just too high.
We are serious when we say that we need everyone to support Troy Davis on May 19th by organizing their own event or awareness-raising activity.
After all, if you had 30 days left to fight for your life, wouldn’t you want to know that you had thousands standing in your corner?
A PDF file available on Amnesty’s website provides some ideas for events and actions:
Here are some ideas for solidarity events. Remember, you don’t have to do anything fancy or elaborate. Just do something visible! And take lots of pictures and video! (And if you haven’t already, please go to http://www.amnestyusa.org/page.do?id=1011672 to register your event.)
- Organize an information table with literature on the death penalty. Hand out Troy Davis fact sheets. Let everyone know about the text action.
- Hold a candlelight vigil. Hand out Troy Davis fact sheets. Bring a bullhorn and encourage people to speak out! Let everyone know about the text action.
- Organize a letter-writing event. Let everyone know about the text action.
- Organize a teach-in or panel discussion on the death penalty. Hand out Troy Davis fact sheets. Let everyone know about the text action.
- Organize a public demonstration calling for clemency for Troy Davis. Such an event could include speakers), banners, candles, or even music. Hand out Troy Davis fact sheets. Let everyone know about the text action.
I hope that everyone will do what they can and spread the word.
I just thought I would add some details of the case from the Amnesty website, because it was not clear to me from the description what had happened in Troy’s case:
“Troy Davis was convicted of murdering a Georgia police officer in 1991. Nearly two decades later, Davis remains on death row – even though the case against him has fallen apart. Davis’ conviction was not based on any physical evidence, and the murder weapon was never found. Since his trial, seven of the nine eyewitnesses have recanted or contradicted their testimony, and one of the remaining witnesses has been implicated by nine others as the actual murderer.” from http://www.amnestyusa.org/death-penalty/troy-davis-finality-over-fairness/page.do?id=1011343
I am really surprised that they would execute someone based only on eye-witness reports, since these are notoriously shaky evidence. This is especially true when the case involves racialized individuals (I don’t know whether this one does). Since the only evidence here seems to be eye-witnesses, and they have since recanted or contradicted their testimony, this seems doubly weird.
I suspect that part of the reason this is going ahead is because it was a cop that died. I think it is very difficult to get a fair trial in cases where you stand accused against police, because there is quite a bit of trust in the police force among middle-class white people. And, when cops are killed there is often outrage because it is perceived as a dangerous job that saves lives.
I think it is also interesting that even though nursing is a more dangerous job than policing, and nursing also saves lives, there is much less public outrage when a nurse is injured or killed on the job.
Thanks Bakka, that’s helpful.
And yes, I think it’s partially because a police officer was killed. I also think it’s because a white police officer was killed, and because Troy Davis is a black man. We know that black men are disproportionately placed on death row to begin with. And I’m pretty sure that most of the executions of those who were later proven innocent were of black men for crimes committed against white people. It’s not exactly a stretch.
Cara,
I invite you and your readers to join other bloggers for the Global Day of Blogging for Troy Davis on May 19th. This event has been registered with Amnesty International and in just a couple of days 16 other bloggers have RSVPed with a resounding yes.
Much obliged!
SjP
If the stay expires on 15 May 2009,
could 19 May 2009 be too late for showing support for Troy ?
When Troy lost in the U. S. Supreme Court on 14 October 2008,
Georgia quickly set the execution date for 27 October 2008.
It was only stayed again due to quick action by Troy’s lawyers
to file on 22 October 2008 an appeal to the 11th Circuit.
I am concerned that Georgia might try to kill Troy quickly,
particularly if it appears that a “Global Day of Action for Troy Davis”
might take place AFTER the stay expires (such as 19 May 2009).
The course of action that I would recommend would be
for IMMEDIATE PUBLICIZED PETITIONING of PRESIDENT OBAMA
for commutation or pardon.
I think (given prior attitudes of the Georgia Board of
Pardons and Paroles and of the U. S. Supreme Court)
that President Obama is the only realistic hope
for commutation or pardon for Troy.
Tony Smith