f death penalty abolitionists also derive their opposition to capital punishment from religious beliefs, in many cases from the exact same previously mentioned scriptures. Be that as it may, opponents, like the proponents, offer practical evidence to support their position. Gilligan (2000) is an ardent abolitionist. He rationalizes that in over 20 years of psychologically examining prison inmates, that punishment does nothing to deter crime, it only serves to fester the hatred already built up inside most prisoners. Gilligan offers many studies that he claims show most criminals perpetuate violence because they have been victimized themselves, either by their personal upbringing or by society. Racism is another factor pointed out by the opponents. Inevitably, with the racial history of this country, the effect of race in the application of the death penalty has become a central part of the death-penalty discourse. This is particularly true as some politicians are making the case for a death-penalty moratorium, in part to consider whether the death penalty is inherently racist. Other such discussions begin with the obvious: the race of the defendant. The Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) reports that black murderers represent 35% of those executed, white murderers 56%. As the argument goes, this must be evidence of systemic racism, as blacks represent 12% of the population, whites 74%, and coupled with the fact that 98% of prosecutor's are white. The final charge of racism on this issue lies within those cases where blacks have been executed for murdering whites and whites have been executed for murdering blacks. There have been 144 blacks and 10 whites executed under such circumstances, or a ratio of 14-to-1 (http://www.essential.org/dpic.html). Error in execution is another strong point for opponents. What if an innocent person is accidentally executed? Currently, anti-death penalty groups present claims...
