There are some great things out there. Things that are purely abstract but beautiful, like love, wisdom, trust, passion; those elements that keep us going, growing and make us good. We take them for granted, the kindness, the purity of souls, a child’s laughter. Yes, for granted, and for waste. Instead, we put power in evil, worship the laughter of pain, dream torture on those around us that cause us abstract pain—and worst of all, we celebrate the killing of another.
In 2002, two men shot thirteen people at random, and ten died. The killers were known as the DC snipers and patrolled a place I called safe, I called home. They did not shoot anyone I knew personally, but they taught me fear. I had fear of going outside, fear that my family was going to be their next spontaneous victim, and fear that the otherwise safe neighborhood I walked at all hours in with my friends was no longer innocent, but tainted and grey. When they were caught, there was no remorse in their hearts. It was not until their trials, did we see humans behind their cold stares. The eldest, John Allen Muhammed was sentenced to death, Lee Boyd Malvo was sentenced to six consecutive life sentences with no parole.
On November 10, 2009, John Allen Muhammad was executed by lethal injection. I watched CNN that day with satisfaction that an evil man was killed for his actions. He was evil, he was dead, and I was glad. My younger cousin turned to me, a child at heart, and asked me in so many words why I was happy to see someone die.
Explaining lethal injection, explaining the death penalty, and explaining why this man who appears like pure evil in my eyes to this child, was not the answer he needed to know. No, he wanted simply to know why, was it ever right to be happy someone is dead?
Regardless of their actions, regardless of their evil/good souls—is it even okay to wish death, and to praise the killing of another?
Osama Bin Laden was pure evil, a man who did not see innocent lives but saw a cluster of something he didn’t agree with and his way of change was not civil, it involved thousands of deaths on our soil and other countries. It involved bombs, guns, wars, and mind-washing. Like Adolf Hitler, and many mastermind evil men out there in our history and present, he was one we all wished evil on after September 11th, we all wished torture on after the attacks in the nineties, and his death brought a national satisfaction.
We didn’t need proof, we didn’t need anything but those bold beautiful words on our TV screens: “Osama bin laden is dead”
And with those words, twitter tweets launched in excitement, Facebook overloaded in happy statuses, and I’m sure blogs out there posted their own two cents of pure joy. He’s dead. We’re happy. The end.
But, I go back to my little cousin’s naiveness, back to a pure soul looking up at me with the very question that is loaded with so much more. Regardless if he is evil, regardless if he is the spawn of Satan—was it good to wish death and praise the death of Osama Bin Laden? Are we then no different then he? He wished death on thousands, he was satisfied with the death toll of September 11th, and these were reasons of why he was a bad man. Why he deserved punishment, but regardless of how pure evil his soul is, we should not stoop to his level and praise the killing of him.
We should not demand to see the death photographs just to satisfy our own needs for validation.
We should however understand he was evil, and those who are evil eventually get what they deserve, but is that always death? Is the death penalty reasonable, is shooting someone in the head fair, especially when they are at home with their family?
I was not a fan of John Allan Muhammad, I was not a fan of Osama Bin Laden, and I’m pretty much convinced I would have thought Hitler was as awesome as the scum on the bottom of my shoe, but I will not praise and rejoice that they are dead. Because to me it seems a little wrong to go down to their level, and be happy for the death of someone I didn’t like. It’s known that wisdom is passed on from generation to generation by the elders. But, sometimes we need a child’s outlook to remind us of the good we all once had.
”I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”
~ Martin Luther King, Jr
~ Martin Luther King, Jr
