Harvard Conference Explores Race and the Death Penalty

A May 2006 conference held at the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard Law School examined new research, legal defense, and public response to the issue of race and the death penalty. The conference, “From Lynch Mobs to the Killing State: A National Conference on Race and the Death Penalty,” featured a number of national academic and legal experts including Barry Scheck, Peter Neufeld, Charles Ogletree, Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, George Kendall, Stephen Bright, Andrea Lyon and Hugo Bedau.

During the conference, sessions explored the connections between America’s racial politics and the practice of capital punishment, as well as the ways in which the nation’s focus on terrorism may be further eroding protections for the accused. The conference coincided with the release of a new book, “From Lynch Mobs to the Killing State,” co-edited by Professors Charles Ogletree and Austin Sarat. This book is available on Amazon for twenty-two dollars.

To learn more about this event, see the Conference’s Web site. For more information regarding race and the death penalty see Race and Studies.