At the cross : race, religion, and citizenship in the politics of the death penalty

233 Pages·2015·1.612 MB·English

by  Price, Melynda J

At the Cross

At the Cross
Race, Religion, and Citizenship
in the Politics of the Death Penalty
z
MELYNDA J. PRICE
1
1
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Price, Melynda J.
At the cross : race, religion, and citizenship in the politics of the death penalty / Melynda J. Price.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978–0–19–020553–9 (hardback : alk. paper) — ISBN 978–0–19–020554–6
(pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Capital punishment—United States. 2. Discrimination in criminal
justice administration—United States. 3. Racism—United States. 4. Religion and justice.
5. African Americans. I. Title.
HV8699.U5P75 2015
364.660973—dc23
2014046236
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper
For my mother,
Sandra Faye Spates Price,
who taught me in her word and deed how to do the hard work
and
For my son,
James Efrain Price,
who keeps me working hard

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Prologue 1
Introduction 5
1. Can the Souls of Black Folk Be Redeemed? Race, Religion,
and the Politics of Public Appeals for Salvation from
the Execution Chamber 15
2. Performing Discretion or Performing Discrimination?
Race, Ritual, and the Denial of Participatory Rights in
Capital Jury Selection 41
3. Do Blacks Die Alone? The Role of Collective Identities
in Individual African American Views of the Death Penalty 69
4. What We Tell Each Other: African American Folk Knowledge
of the Death Penalty 91
5. Something Less Than Equal but the Same: The Death Penalty
and the Inversion of Equality in African American Politics
of Punishment 114
Conclusion: The Death Penalty and the Shared Legacy of Race 138
Epilogue: Troy, Trayvon, and the Trend(?) toward Abolition 146
Appendices 149
Notes 157
Bibliography 191
Index 209

Acknowledgments
this book has been a long time in the making. Over the years, I have
been helped and encouraged by more people than I can remember, let alone
acknowledge. I thank them all, but some warrant specific mention.
First and foremost, I would like to thank my mother, Sandra Spates
Price, for her unending support. Alone, she raised my sisters and me and
stressed the value of education. We have all graduated from college and
have a few advanced degrees. Our achievements are as much hers as they
are our own. I am also grateful that when she sent us into the world of ac-
ademia that she entrusted my sister and me to the guidance of Dr. Jewel L.
Prestage at Prairie View A&M University. Dr. Prestage had a vision for my
life that went beyond anything I knew. From day one at PV, she preached
the gospel of graduate education and changed the path of my and my sis-
ter’s lives.
I would also like to acknowledge the encouragement and support of my
older sisters—Sandra, Leslie, Sharon, and the baby—Shawana—for their love
and support. They have been more than sisters through this long process—
friends, moving women, personal chefs, babysitters, and more. They have
also allowed me to love and care for their children in ways that others would
consider intrusive and rude. Although they are all grown—Joseph, Melissa,
Adrienne, Alicia, Alex, and Leslie—they have been my inspiration and sup-
port. I thank my uncle, Joe Louis Spates, who passed shortly before the pub-
lication of this book, and my aunt, Mary Spates Gordon; both have always
offered a word of encouragement and unwanted lawyer jokes. I have to also
thank the others members of my family who were supportive even when they
were skeptical about this process, especially my cousins Erica, Wanda, Kath-
ryn, and their children. I always have to thank separately my twin sister and
fellow political scientist, Melanye Price. From the very beginning, she has
been with me. She has helped me through several cross-country moves and
many other transitions.