1. United States
2. Colo.
3. Letter

I am writing to express my outrage and unequivocal opposition to the planned livestreaming of an execution by firing squad. Turning the deliberate killing of a human being into a public spectacle is morally reprehensible and an affront to the principles of a civilized democracy. My greatest concern is the psychological damage this could inflict on children throughout America and around the world. Once broadcast, footage of an execution can be recorded, shared, and replayed indefinitely. Children could encounter these horrifying images through social media despite their parents’ efforts to protect them. Such exposure can cause severe anxiety, nightmares, emotional distress, and potentially irreversible psychological trauma. What message are we sending children when their own government broadcasts the killing of another human being? That violence is entertainment? That human dignity disappears when someone is convicted of a crime? Our government’s responsibility is to protect children, not deliberately create and distribute images that could traumatize them. Consider the military personnel ordered to carry out this execution. Taking another human life carries profound psychological consequences. Broadcasting their participation compounds that burden and reduces human beings to instruments of political theater. The victims’ families, the condemned person’s family, and the families of those participating deserve compassion, not the prospect of these images circulating forever. Regardless of one’s position on capital punishment, there must be a moral boundary between administering justice and turning death into a public spectacle. I call upon you to publicly oppose this broadcast, demand accountability from those authorizing it, and pursue legislation preventing executions from becoming public entertainment. The presidency demands moral judgment, restraint, and respect for human dignity. Deliberately broadcasting an execution demonstrates a disturbing disregard for those responsibilities. Our children deserve better. Our military personnel deserve better. America deserves better. I expect a substantive response explaining your position and what actions you intend to take. History will judge not only those who authorize such cruelty, but also those who remain silent.