There are at least four languages being spoken on this bus.
— (@pluckypresby) July 20, 2013
The bus to which the tweet refers is the bus with the group of young people from the Presbytery of New York City who attended the 2013 Presbyterian Youth Triennium.
On the streets, in the subway, and even when we travel, languages mark New York.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under New York
1 stayed
Amnesty International reports that:
A judge in Georgia has granted Warren Hill a temporary stay of execution to consider a lethal injection question. A petition is still pending before the US Supreme Court on the claim that Warren Hill has “mental retardation” and that his execution would therefore violate the US Constitution. The execution warrant does not expire until noon on 20 July.
Shortly before the execution was to be carried out on July 15, the stay was issued. The hearing is to be held on July 18. If the stay is lifted before the execution warrant expires at noon on July 20, the state could conduct the execution.
1 scheduled
John M. Quintilla, Jr. is scheduled to be executed today in Texas. The execution may have already taken place. I am having trouble finding information. Quintilla was convicted of killing Victor Billings, a former sheriff’s deputy, in a robbery turned violent. Reports are that, along with two others, Quintilla “entered an action amusement center through a partially opened back door, demanded cash from an employee and advised all other patrons to get down on the floor. An adult white male [Victor Billings] attempted to disarm Quintanilla and was fatally shot three times. A second victim, and adult white female, was also shot, but the injury was not fatal.”
My prayers for those who loved Victor Billings and Myra Wright and Joseph Handspike. There can be no defense or justification of their murders.
But the execution of those who commit such acts is not the answer. It feeds the cycle of violence. There has to be a better way.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Capital Punishment, Current Events, Death Penalty, Human Rights
Purple flowers
surround a fence.
Central Park
Manhattan, New York
1 September 2012
While walking through University Circle in Cleveland, I again spotted a variation on the theme of two towers.
There are obvious parallels to the two towers of Central Park. The Upper West Side of Broadway also has two towers.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Cleveland Heights, Photo
20 July 1943 – Toshi-Aline Ohta married an aspiring folksinger about to be deployed overseas.
9 July 2013 – Toshi-Aline Ohta Seeger died.
For the almost 70 years between those two days, Toshi shared life with Pete Seeger. In their partnership, Toshi provided support and counsel and wisdom and stability. Toshi served as the rock that allowed Pete to carry on his work.
Toshi worked as an organizer (Pete noted that she become accomplished at this work because she had to organize him), activist, and filmmaker – she produced a film of work songs by inmates of a Texas prison in Huntsville.
Toshi served as an organizer and programmer for the Clearwater’s Great Hudson River Revival that has raised funds and consciousness on environmental issues.
Toshi and Pete had four children, one of whom died in infancy.
Woman.
Witness.
Wife.
Partner.
Mother.
Rock.
Activist.
Artist.
Organizer.
Child of God.
Thanks be to God for the life of Toshi Seeger.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Current Events
Georgia has set an execution date of 15 July for Warren Lee Hill, Jr. This is not the first time that a date has been set.
Stays have been granted on previous occasions. Questions focus on his mental capacity.
Amnesty International reports that experts who have assessed Hill now say that he has ‘mental retardation’, which would make his
execution unconstitutional. His lawyers are asking the US Supreme Court to step in.
Hill was serving time for the murder of his girl friend, Myra Wright, when he was convicted of killing Joseph Handspike, another inmate, and sentenced to death. There is no question of his guilt.
The question in this case, beyond those in any execution, revolves around Hill’s mental capacity. His IQ is reported to be 70. This raises the question of his mental capacity and his awareness to understand his acts.
The U.S. Supreme Court addressed the issue of capacity in the 2002 decision Atkins. v. Virginia. The American Psychological Association summarizes that decision as follows:
The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, ruled that executions of mentally retarded criminals are “cruel and unusual punishments” prohibited by the Eighth Amendment. The Court cited the growing number of states prohibiting the execution of persons with mental retardation as a reflection of society’s view that offenders considered to have mental retardation are categorically less culpable than the average criminal. The Court also reasoned that it was “not persuaded that the execution of mentally retarded criminals will measurably advance the deterrent or the retributive purpose of the death penalty.”
However, Georgia has a high standard of proof for proving mental retardation: the standard of proving mental incapacitation beyond a reasonable doubt. Georgia does not believe that standard has been met in Hill’s case.
Amnesty International notes that Hill’s lawyers are asking the US Supreme Court to stop the execution. Several US law professors have filed a brief arguing that this is a case in which the Court should take this unusual step of exercising the Court’s power to consider “original habeas petitions” (in exceptional circumstances to take a case brought directly to it rather than on appeal from a lower court).
Amnesty International asks that those concerned about this case write immediately – before 15 July – to the Attorney General of Georgia. Letters should:
The Honorable Sam Olens, Attorney General of Georgia
40 Capitol Square, SW
Atlanta, GA 30334, USA
Fax: +1 404 657 8733
Email: AGOlens@law.ga.gov
Salutation: Dear Attorney General
Copies of the letter should go to:
Governor Nathan Deal
Georgia State Capitol
Atlanta, GA 30334, USA
Fax: +1 404 657 7332
Email: http://gov.georgia.gov/webform/contact-governor-domestic-form
I grieve for Myra Wright and Joseph Handspike and for their family and friends. There can be no defense for Hill’s crimes.
But that is not all the story. What does it say about our society – about us – that we resort to execution in the case of an individual with the mental capacity and awareness of Hill? Can we not find another way?
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Capital Punishment, Current Events, Death Penalty, Human Rights
Buildings in the background
provide a reminder
that Central Park
is urban.
Purple flowers in the foreground
provide a reminder
that Central Park
is a park.
Central Park
Manhattan, New York
1 September 2012
I planned to spend today visiting Battery Park, then riding the Staten Island Ferry so I could take some photos using the new telescopic lens I have on “extended loan” from one of my sons.
I got up and found myself moving a bit slowly. Going back to sleep certainly seemed an option.
Determined to force my hand, I posted my plans on Facebook. Once public, there would be no going back.
Shortly after I posted, my colleague and friend, the Rev. Melodee Bottari, pastor of Olivet Presbyterian Church invited me to a BBQ at the church.
It sounded good to me. I went and had a great time that included a tour of the church. I saw where the church provides housing for homeless women and the room where volunteers working with Presbyterian Disaster Assistance on recovery from Hurricane Sandy will stay.
The BBQ took place on the church lawn and included an invitation to register for the Vacation Bible School.
Good folks. Good food. Good ministry. A good visit.
See you along the Trail.
Words matter.
That’s the message of a recent post by my friend Grace Ji-Sun Kim. She reflects on Bill Maher’s observations about Paula Deen. As one who makes his living using words, Maher reportedly said, “It’s just a word, it’s a wrong word, she’s wrong to use it, but do we always have to make people go away?”
Grace joins a number of people, that apparently include Maher’s guest at the time of his statement, who remind us of the power of words.
As children, we grow up with the schoolyard phrase: “Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words may never hurt me.” Children say this because they know, too well, that words may hurt them.
Agreed.
If we look back in our lives, we will realize that there were certain words that people said to us that have stuck with us for a long time.
Agreed.
In both cases, my agreement arises from practical, personal experience as well as observation and reflection.
Words have power. Power to degrade. Power to inspire. Power to touch and move. Power to abase and wound.
Totalitarian regimes have long recognized the power of words. When the military junta seized power Chile, they arrested, tortured, and killed Victor Jara. His crime? He used the words of his songs to support the government of Salvador Allende.
As Grace writes:
Words influence our thoughts and our ideas. Words shape how we see the world, by causing us to stress certain things and ignore other things.
Once we realize the power of words, we recognize that we can actually start to embrace one another through words.
Our words should be used for moving us and making us into meaningful people who seek to encourage and motivate others. Once we realize the importance and power of our words, we can become more careful with what we say because we know that what we say matters.
Thanks Grace for your reminder about the power of words. May I choose mine carefully, lovingly, and justly.
See you along the Trail.
P.S. In the pile of books I hope to read soon is The Grace of Sophia by Grace Ji-Sun Kim. I look forward to the read.
Filed under Current Events, Friends
Whose holiday is the Fourth of July?
We like to think of this day as a day of celebration for all the citizens of the United States of America. But as Frederick Douglass proclaimed over 150 years ago, for many people – people living in this country – the Fourth of July serves as a painful reminder and a mockery.
When he spoke, the issue was slavery. Millions lived in the chains of chattel slavery. Those chains have fallen, thanks in large part, to Frederick Douglass and other African-Americans who resisted enslavement.
But many still do not enjoy fully the vision of freedom. Racism persists. A number of states greeted the recent Supreme Court decision on the Voting Rights Act by moving ahead with Voter ID laws, some of which have been rejected under the voting rights act. Immigrants face challenges as they seek to make a new life. Supreme Court decisions have made it possible for our LGBTQ brothers and sisters to marry – in certain states. An economic gulf looms between the rich and many people who struggle to find ends, let alone to make them meet. Men, women, and children are trafficked for labor and for sex. Slavery has morphed; it has not disappeared. For many, the promises of freedom and the United States remain unrealized. For all of us, the words of Frederick Douglass ring true.
Frederick Douglass was born in a slave cabin in Maryland. The date and year remain unknown even to Douglass. The condition of enslavement resulted in such a lack of knowledge for many. Douglass endured the violation and horrors of slavery. And he resisted. His first attempt to escape failed. Then he tried again and, in early September 1838, disguised as a sailor, he escaped to freedom – precarious freedom, but freedom none the less.
During a visit to the African Burial Ground National Monument in Manhattan, Tricia and I opted to take a tour that focused on slavery, resistance, and abolition efforts in New York. We learned that Douglass made his first stop in New York City. He did not stay because of the city’s support for slavery. In New York, Douglass married Anna Murray. They went to New Bedford, Massachusetts to live.
Douglass became a leader in the abolitionist movement. A talented speaker, he would spend about six months each year travelling and speaking. Douglass attended the Seneca Falls Convention and became a supporter of women’s rights including the right to vote. This connection led Anna and Frederick to move their family to Rochester, New York, perhaps to be near Susan B. Anthony.
On July 5, 1852, in Rochester, Douglass spoke at an event commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence: the Fourth of July, U.S. Independence Day. Perhaps they anticipated his words and tone. Most likely they did not. Douglass reminded his audience that, “This Fourth of July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn.” He went on to note:
What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? I answer; a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sound of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciation of tyrants brass fronted impudence; your shout of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanks-givings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy — a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are the people of the United States, at this very hour.
Douglass did not end there, however. He observed that, despite his experience and the painful realities, “I do not despair of this country.” He closed with a poem of hope written by William Lloyd Garrison that begins:
God speed the year of jubilee
The wide world o’er!
The poem ends with an affirmation remaining engaged in the struggle for liberty, freedom, and justice – of working to make the promise of the Fourth of July real for all.
Frederick Douglass devoted himself to that struggle.
May I do the same.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Antiracism, Current Events, Human Rights, National Park, Photo
Along the Graybeard Trail 