I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the spring. The cherry blossoms are just starting to bloom in some places in DC, and the weather is beautiful. I've started exploring the city more during the sunny afternoons, and last week I started going to film screenings for the Environmental Film Festival. I am really interested in the environment and conservation, so I loved seeing the documentaries about topics ranging from deep-sea fish to Native American rights. It is also interesting to go to different venues, including art galleries and embassies.
Last week at work started off well. On Tuesday I went to a Maryland House of Representatives meeting in Annapolis to hear the testimonies against the death penalty, which Amnesty has been working to abolish in the state of Maryland. Before the bill to repeal capital was heard, there were hours of other bills that we listened to. It was a really interesting. The main bills that were discussed included 287(g), which works as a partnership between U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and local law enforcement agencies. It seeks to expand ICE's capacity to arrest, jail and remove illegal immigrants from the country. I am not versed on this legislation, but there were really impassioned testimonies both for and against it.
After the discussion of the immigration bill, there was a hearing on HB724, which would increase the period of time within which a prosecution for fourth degree sexual assaults must be instituted after the offense was committed. It proposes extending the amount of time the victim has to come forward from 1 to 3 years. The testimony on this issue was polarized, and there was a large disconnect in the examples that were being used by each side. The representatives who were in favor of extending the amount of time a victim had were continually citing examples of heinous offenses, while those who were not in favor kept making the point that this bill would allow for smaller infractions to be brought to court years after they happened, when too much time will have passed to legitimately question witnesses.
The bill that we were there to hear about was HB1075, which would repeal the death penalty and procedures and requirements related to the death penalty in Maryland. The hearing was really interesting and at times moving. All of the testimonies I heard before we had to leave at 4.30 were in favor of repeal, and the people who were speaking included a person wrongfully put on death row for a crime he didn't commit and the family of a murder victim. There were a few criticisms from some of the representatives, including a man that kept reiterating that there have been so few executions in Maryland in past years that the bill is basically irrelevant and a waste of time to discuss. Those in favor felt that the law itself is wrong and that it still needs to be repealed. There were a few comments on the idea of taking a life to show that murder is wrong being inherently flawed, but most of the arguments centered around the practical issues that surface when a person is put on trial for capital punishment, including years of waiting, exorbitant amounts of money, and the impossibility of eliminating human error. Hearing the family of the murder victim explain how the death penalty for the perpetrator will not give them closure or begin to help them in any way was powerful. The death penalty expert at Amnesty explained that the main obstacle to the bill being passed lies not in the House but in the Senate, and that she expects the bill to be passed within 4 years. Four years seemed like a long time to me, but she said that for the amount of time that they have been working on the project, it isn't.
For the rest of the week I worked on the final push for our Annual General Meeting in San Francisco, which took place over the weekend. I am glad that all the preparation for it is over! For the rest of the week I issued press releases and wrote media reports. Now there is a new person that has taken over as my supervisor, so I am helping to train her. It will be much easier having another person around when the other intern isn't here. I am currently working on some development for Amnesty's website, including making a press section with links to the most memorable articles Amnesty has appeared in in the past few weeks. I hope everyone has a great week!
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