On Wednesday, September 21—just a couple days from now—Troy Davis faces execution in Georgia—a legal lynching for the death of a policeman in Savannah, Georgia. In the face of compelling evidence of his innocence, the governor signed his death warrant. After his conviction in 1991, the struggle for justice for Troy Davis spread worldwide and three earlier execution dates were halted for judicial review of the evidence and circumstances. There is no physical evidence linking Davis to the killing of a Savannah cop in 1989 and seven out of nine witnesses at his trial have since recanted their testimony, some claiming they were coerced by police. Now the last chance for justice is in the hands of the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles which will sit for Troy’s last hearing on Monday, September 19. The board has the power, as a part of the executive branch, to grant clemency and commute his sentence to life in prison without parole (also an outrage.)
This struggle has inspired people around the world to declare "Too Much Doubt to Execute!" As the clock is ticking, 633,000 supporters signed petitions that were delivered to the Board of Pardons and Paroles on Thursday, September 15, in lots and lots of boxes, calling for a halt to the execution. Troy Davis’s sister, Amnesty International, the NAACP and some online activist websites initiated the collection of the petitions, which to date total 800,000. Ten thousand signatures were collected from door-to-door canvassing in Savannah, Georgia where the incident occurred.
On Friday, September 16, a Global Day of Solidarity for Troy Davis was called by Amnesty International, thousands of people from around Georgia took to the streets of Atlanta, marching from downtown to Ebenezer Baptist Church, home church and center of Martin Luther King Jr., for a prayer service which packed the church to the gills. Across the country, there were three hundred events, as well as events that took place around the world, all ringing with the chant “I am Troy Davis.” Starting on Sunday afternoon, September 18, a 24-hour vigil took place outside the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles, with others joining in on Monday morning to have a presence outside the building while the Board was hearing the case. While waiting for the decision from the Board, more demonstrations are planned for Tuesday, September 20, and on the day of the scheduled execution, September 21.
The resistance to this outrageous injustice is very broad: National and local civil rights organizations, students and exonerated former prisoners, anti-death penalty activists and elected officials, faith and community leaders; Martina Correia and other members of Troy's family; artists and prominent figures like Jimmy Carter, Desmond Tutu and even Pope Benedict have come out in support of clemency.
Stay tuned for updates.
Below are the two slogans Revolution readers took to the Troy Davis demonstrations. They were very popular, with many people asking where they could get a sign.
STOP the Legal Lynching of Troy Davis!
The Whole Damn System is Guilty!
The Whole Damn System is Guilty!
STOP the Legal Lynching of Troy Davis!
Fight the Power, and Transform the People, for Revolution
Fight the Power, and Transform the People, for Revolution
