The Call for Innocence and Freedom Again
Leonard F. Peltier once said, “Innocence is the weakest defense. Innocence has a single voice that can only say over and over again, "I didn't do it." Guilt has a thousand voices, all of them lies.” This powerful quote featured in Peltier’s novel, “Prison Writings” that was written in his prison cell reflects on the issue of himself being incarcerated for over 30 years for an action he states he didn’t do. Some may question if it would be mean anything now if Peltier was released and given freedom again. No human being should ever have their life completely taken away from them because of a crime that they did not commit. With this action happening to Peltier, he has found a way through his writings
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to still state his innocence with a lot of heart and compassion. Three ways to become aware that it would most definitely matter if Peltier were to see life out of prison again are the experiences he could share, his innocence that he can prove, and the life he can gain with his time that is still left on this earth. Reading Peltiers writings, one can sense that he knows there is a chance of never leaving but also still has hope of living a free life again spending it with his family and loved ones.
He then focuses on the continuing struggle of his people to be treated with dignity and equality and shows how his perceptions and opinions have been molded by his own experiences, from childhood to the harshness of prison life. In his writings he states, “I don’t know how to save the world. I don’t have the answers or The Answer. I hold no secret knowledge as to how to fix the mistakes of generations past and present. I only know that without compassion and respect for all of Earth’s inhabitants, none of us will survive—nor will we deserve to.” This quote perfectly shows the advice of what he can bring to attention if he was ever released. He has learned this source of compassion and respect while being wrongly locked up for all these years and it is something that could be usefully preached through out this …show more content…
nation. Inside of this nations prison systems, inmates do not freely get to fight fro their rights.
Their rights are fully in the guard’s hands. Peltier is an example of how flawed our justice system can be. Whether someone believes in his innocence or not is not the point. The point is that our current system remains flawed despite the insensitive beings that are too scared to take a serious look into the conscience of the victims that are suffering because of our system. It was stated the FBI used illegal tactics and provided false evidence that was used to arrest and convict him. Furthermore, even Judge Heaney, who at one point denied Peltier a new trial and has reconsidered after viewing the full evidence. The FBI use disadvantaged tactics against Peltier and were equally in the wrong during the shoot out at Pine Ridge. After reading all of his writings, the genuine tone of his pledge of innocence was most definitely accompanied. If Peltier could just get one supporter from our justice system, he may have the facts to win his innocence
over. Peltier states “Only one thing’s sadder than remembering you were once free, and that’s forgetting you were once free. ” Imagine living with that thought. This is a great way to think more deeply about it mattering or not if he is to ever get out. No matter how old Peltier is when/if he was to get out; it is still that sense of being able to die free and to relive the feeling of before being incarcerated. It is obvious that plenty of life was taken away from him that will never be replaced, however, some life being restored is much better than none. Overall, a tremendous part of Leonard Peltiers life was wrongfully taken away from him, however, we have to now aside from that point and realize that he still has some time left to regain back some of the life he lost. Just the feel of being free again after being locked up for close to 40 years would mater to Peltier. If ever give that chance Peltier can use his experiences and his portrayed innocence as motive to still make a mark in his life after the hard times.
In the article titled ”Man Denied Parole in a Flagstaff Hotel” the article follows the case of then teenager Jacob Wideman murdering his bunkmate Eric Kane while he slept in his bed at a summer camp hotel in Flagstaff, Arizona in 1986. Jacob was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years, the article was written in 2011the year of his first parole hearing. The issue for the readers to decipher in the article is if they believe Jacob who has served the past 25 years in prison should be granted parole and be released from prison. The article gives up to date insight from the parents of both of boys, Jacob who committed the murder, and Eric the victim all leading up to Jacob’s parole hearing. In this paper I will highlight key points from the article while answering key questions to give a better understanding of the trial for myself and for the readers.
Jacoby can be easily perceived as an upset and alarmed individual who blames the rise of criminal activity in the United States on the failure of the criminal justice system. He cares about people and believes that the safety of individuals is decreasing because criminals are not punished effectively by imprisonment and that some even receive a “sign of manhood” from going to prison (197). Additionally, he is upset that the ineffective system is so expensive. His concern for his audience’s safety and his carefully argued grounds, which he uses to support his claim, create a persona of an intelligent person of
There are many ways to decide what makes a man guilty. In an ethical sense, there is more to guilt than just committing the crime. In Charles Brockden Browns’ Wieland, the reader is presented with a moral dilemma: is Theodore Wieland guilty of murdering his wife and children, even though he claims that the command came from God, or is Carwin guilty because of his history of using persuasive voices, even though his role in the Wieland family’s murder is questionable? To answer these questions, one must consider what determines guilt, such as responsibility, motives, consequences, and the act itself. No matter which view is taken on what determines a man’s guilt, it can be concluded that Wieland bears the fault in the murder of Catharine Wieland and her children.
He states that “Old truths have been relearned; untruths have been unlearned.” What he means is that the old ways that were correct must come back into the law and the lies that are in the law must be removed. He constantly uses the phrase “I see” to make statements. One of his statements is about the poverty in the United States. He
In Pearl Tull’s old age, she starts to lose her sight until she is completely unable to see. Pearl may be the only one within Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant who has gone literally blind, but many of the characters are just as blind emotionally. Throughout Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, many characters are too absorbed in their own problems and self-pity to notice the problems of the people around them. Almost all of the characters don’t realize how much their actions may have affected someone else, or are oblivious to the fact they did anything at all. When taking a closer look at the story, it could be said that Pearl Tull is the reason behind all of her family’s problems. Pearl is blind not only literally—in her old age—but metaphorically
...that he could only achieve a forum for his message of peace through an act of great violence. It was his hope that the sheer magnitude of his act would express how desperately people needed to heed his call.
In Harry Mulisch’s novel The Assault, the author not only informs society of the variance in perception of good and evil, but also provides evidence on how important it is for an innocent person experiencing guilt to come to terms with their personal past. First, Mulisch uses the characters Takes, Coster, and Ploeg to express the differences in perspective on the night of the assault. Then he uses Anton to express how one cannot hide from the past because of their guilt. Both of these lessons are important to Mulisch and worth sharing with his readers.
Most people cannot understand why I have selected Shaka Senghor as an American who’s made a significant contribution in the last decade. I don’t care about the status quo my goal is to reach the outliers of which I consider Mr. Senghor. After spending two decades incarcerated it is mostly what Senghor went through during his sentence that contributed to his conversion. Senghor lived more than 7 years of his prison sentence in solitude confinement which provided him with much time to reflect on his choices and more importantly to examine his life and share what he learned with others.
If you been in or around law enforcement or military you properly heard of Lt. Dave Grossman. Lt Grossman is a retired Lieutenant colonel with the United Stated Army. Lt. Grossman is an author that specialize in the psychology of killing. “It’s from a police training conference with Dave Grossman, one of the most prolific police trainers in the country. Grossman’s classes teach officers to be less hesitant to use lethal force, urge them to be willing to do it more quickly and teach them how to adopt the mentality of a warrior. Jeronimo Yanez, the Minnesota police who shot and killed Philando Castile in July, had attended one of Grossman’s classes called “The Bulletproof Warrior” (though that class was taught by Grossman’s business partner, Jim Glennon).” (Balko, 2014)
“How Writers In Prisons Empower Inmates” talks about how some prisoners that write some kind of literature while in prison have a better chance of not going back to prison when they are released. It also talks about how the literature that other inmates write can greatly influence and empower other inmates. The literature of another inmate can really affect someone because the literature is coming from someone in the same situation as them. the inmate can use the literature as advice or just something they can relate to.
Although he enforces the prospect that nonviolence is hard to achieve he also acknowledges sometimes it is impossible all together. Therefore, allocating for the audience to understand that nonviolence does not have to be a pursuit of perfection, but rather a challenge to become better. Consequently, he attributes a sense of normalcy greatly needed to nonviolence. By way of focusing on Jesus as the most prominent figure in the pursuit of nonviolence he gave the prospect an air of unattainability. However, he successfully eliminates that intimidation; thus, nonviolence is able to hold onto some of its strongest qualities, that of will and
Nelson Mandela has just gotten out of prison and is speaking to a rally of ANC supporters in Cape Town urging a continued struggle for racial equality and a government not dominated by any one race, black or white. Mandela is using the built up passion and anger from years of oppression to instill a resolve in the ANC members and others who are fighting for equality in South Africa. Calm Logic Despite his time in prison, Nelson Mandela was very calm and forgiving about his time there. He opens his speech with “I greet you all in the name of peace, democracy and freedom for all.”
In J.R.R. Tolkien's, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Fellowship of the Ring is the first novel. The setting of the story takes place in Middle Earth, which is a world Tolkien created himself. It rotates around the One Ring that holds a considerable measure of power, and that power is held by Frodo Baggins. He leaves the shire to keep the ring out of Sauron's hands, which grasps all Sauron's power and if he holds that power again, he can enslave Middle Earth and do incredible evil things. Along their adventure, they meet a man named Tom Bombadil. Tolkien purposely made Bombadil a puzzling character, yet significant. Bombadil is mysterious because he does not have a classification and the ring does
His right as a citizen needed to be protect. Nevertheless, he still need at least some money to fight against injustice. Because of poverty, the only thing he can do as an innocent street teenager is to suffer the long-time staying in jail. If he had responsible parents, he would not be abandoned in the jail with nobody care for him. Teenager period was a crucial threshold for him, all he need is a guidance from his parents about how to be a mature man. But he was not the only one who suffers from his race. After several years in prison, he writes, “I began to see who I was in a new context, with a deeper sense of responsibility and love for my people”(225.) After seeing so many his people in prison and his people’s suffering outside the prison, he sees his people and himself in a new context in the racial and historical level. He can say parts of his struggle was from his parents. But for his parents, the society never be good to them as well. Historically, American society is so mean to his people. In the book staying in the prison years of time is one of the biggest suffering Baca
If we are to be truly innocent and humble beings, we must recognize our own innate guilt as human and accept it. If we do not, we will constantly be obsessed by our “state of apparent acquittals”. Kafka, Franz. A. The Trial. Trans.