Growing up, I remember thinking that this man would leave a mark, not just on my country’s history, but on the way I personally sought to live in this world. Martin Luther King Jr., is undoubtedly one of the our nation’s largest icons and heroes in the American fight for justice, equality, and freedom for all people, regardless of their differences. He has become the vanguard at the front lines of a movement for justice and integrity here in the U.S. and worldwide. He and his wife Coretta Scott King have consequently impacted the lives of generations to come as a result of his precedence of nonviolence and his charge to all people to speak up against institutionalized wrongs.

However, many people do not consider or discuss his stance against the death penalty, a law that has now impacted every generation of America since its founding. The National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (NCADP), Fission’s client, is mobilizing the voice of the 90 million Americans who believe that it is morally wrong. This weekend the organization’s 90 Million Strong Campaign turns to the visionary words of Dr. King, looking toward the day when the death penalty no longer exists.

A wide swath of Americans oppose the death penalty for many reasons, including its horrific psychological effects on employees of the prison system, its financial costs to states each year, and because numerous innocent people are put to death. They leave behind grieving families and communities. These reasons, which originate from years of documented statistics and research, form a compelling case for the abolition of the death penalty.

Yet, I believe that Dr. King would give us the best reason to abolish such laws. It may be surprising to some that it is not just because of the death penalty’s racial bias and its proclivity to destroying minority communities. I believe that he would oppose it on the basic grounds of his belief that, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” He would say that murder and death cannot fix nor right any wrongs. Dr. King would ask, How can murder be used to fight murder? 

I think he would say that only a culture that believes in the idea that death should be used to combat violence could continue a tradition such as the death penalty. This penalty is inherently against his understanding of justice, against his convictions about our nation’s faults,  and against the vision of what he wanted this country to be. We can no longer ignore the death penalty laws in our country while we celebrate the legacy of this man. It is time we really took a stand for justice and declared that we truly are 90 million strong against the death penalty and for Dr. King’s dream for our nation.

Please tell your story about why you think the death penalty is wrong. Then share it on social media to tell your friends to share their own stories!