In the Land of Invisible Women

In this article, i was shocked by the way women are treated in Yemen. It is difficult for me to understand that particular culture because it is so different than mine. The fact that Alisha's parents waited a month after her first period to wed her makes me realize how young she must have been. Having to be submissive to a man more than twice her age must be scary everyday. I can only imagine. Especially having a mother go through the same thing as you and making you do it as well because they fear they will get in trouble, is a lot of pressure. What is even more pressure is having to stay with your husband despite your unhappiness because the marriage was a good arrangement for your family. In the US we may choose our own husbands and many many marriages end in divorce. The story of Wahaba was just wow. She was abused by her husband every night and then when he abused their children, she fought back. Unfortunately he died over the course of the night and she was convicted of murder. She has had no voice during her hearings and she has left her poor three children without parents. the fact that women who are prostitutes are arrested and not the men who use them as prostitution is the same for both the US and Yemen. Nonetheless, women in Yemen have a much more difficult life in Yemen than those women living in the US. We need to do something more to help them. 

Can forgiveness play a role in criminal justice?

This article really pulled at my heart strings. I felt so terrible for the two families as something unspeakable changed their lives forever. had there not been a gun in that house, Ann Grosemire would still be alive. It was such a freak of the moment incident that would end one life and change many lives.  I think forgiveness needs to become a more frequent occurrence in our time. I know from the past month I have noticed how stubborn and unforgiving many of my friends and family are and it is not healthy for them. they hold onto anger and stress over a situation instead of letting it go and moving past it. I dont think restorative justice should be taken lightly but i remember reading Conor McBride's comment how at the meeting with Ann's parents, it was more difficult then anything a judge could say. I believe people make mistakes but i do not think an eye for an eye is relevant here. Restorative justice allows people to forgive and move past the tragedy.

Dead Man Walking

               Before watching Dead Man Walking, I was sure I was against the death penalty for the simple for that it is wrong to kill a human and that it is God's decision when someone dies. I had heard that it costs less to put someone on death row then to support them in prison, which makes sense. Although it definitely does not justify killing someone. 

               After watching Dead Man Walking, I have to say it thoroughly surprised me. It provided me with an array of perspective, ranging from the victims families to the committed felon’s family. I wish the movie continued because id love to see what the parents of the victims said after seeing their children’s murderer killed before their eyes. The whole scene of his death was incredibly powerful because I could see the fear in his eyes and I felt for him, despite how difficult character he was to watch. It was interesting to watch the characters interact, the tension between Sister Helen and Walter’s family and the inability to communicate between Matthew’s family. I believe that there is a lesson in living the remainder of your life in prison and that our generation glorifies death in a very unhealthy way. Now this may be getting off topic but there are people are kill themselves but not many people commit crimes to serve time in prison. For people who do not believe in God and Heaven and hell, death may seem better than life. This movie only further proved to me how terrible the death penalty is and that it really does not do any good. 

Roses in December 

I look at what Jean did and I am amazed. Her selflessness and dedication to do the little she could do, and in a way giving her entire life for it. She felt such a strong force bringing her to help save the people of El Salvador and it is truly commendable. I wish I could say I would do the same. Sure ive been on different service trips giving my time and earn money to others but I do not think that if someone asked me to escape to El Salvador, which was experiencing a civil war, that I would go. I am content helping others through my week service trips and donating time, money and items. I guess I find comfort in that through what Thea Bowman said about how if each of us would light a candle, we would shine a tremendous light. 
I believe we should continue to try to reconstruct social structures because despite how quickly social structures dehumanize people, the little good we do shines. We cannot give up on our fellow brothers and sisters and that is exactly what Jean was not willing to do. Despite what everyone was telling her, Jean felt a deeper connection to help those in El Salvador, specifically, the children. I commend Jean for her life and how she helped so many people, while risking her own.