State-Sanctioned Violence: Marcellus Williams and the Death Penalty in America

Messy Liberation: Feminist Conversations about Politics and Pop Culture

In this important episode of Messy Liberation, Becky Mollenkamp and Taina Brown discuss the devastating case of Marcellus Williams, a Black man executed in Missouri despite strong evidence of his innocence. They explore the racial inequities embedded in the U.S. legal system, focusing on the death penalty, the prison industrial complex, and the connection between modern-day incarceration and the legacy of slavery. This conversation touches on state-sanctioned violence, the systemic oppression of Black and brown bodies, and the urgent need for change in how justice is delivered in America.

Discussed in this episode:

• Wrongful executions and racial injustice: The case of Marcellus Williams serves as a tragic example of how the death penalty disproportionately impacts Black men in the U.S.
• State-sanctioned violence and the death penalty: A look at how executions perpetuate racial injustice, including the recent case of Khalil Owens, and why the legal system continues to fail marginalized communities.
• The prison industrial complex and systemic racism: How the U.S. prison system, particularly privatized prisons, profits from incarcerating people of color, creating a modern form of slavery through prison labor exploitation.
• Connection between slavery and modern prisons: Examining the historical roots of the prison system in slavery and eugenics, and how these legacies shape racial disparities in incarceration and executions today.
• Abolishing the death penalty: Why the movement to end capital punishment is essential for dismantling systemic racism, and how activists are pushing for change in the legal system.

Resources mentioned:

• The Innocence Project
• Death Penalty Information Center
• “Capital Punishment and the Legacies of Slavery and Lynching in the United States”
• “The end of the abolition era: Democrats quietly drop their opposition to the death penalty” from Salon Magazine
• “The New Jim Crow” by Michelle Alexander
• “13th” by Ava DuVernay on Netflix

If this episode sparked new thoughts or questions, reach out to us at [e-mail]. We’d love to hear from you!

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LEARN MORE:

• Taina Brown WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | THREADS
• Becky Mollenkamp WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | THREADS | FEMINIST FOUNDERS