Oklahoma has been responsible for nearly a quarter of all executions in the country since resuming the death penalty in 2021. Only Texas, which put 10 people to death in that same period, has executed more.
Amherst professor Austin Sarat reflects on capital punishment in 2022, pointing out that while it has continued its decades-long decline, it is still plagued with serious injustices. Professor Sarat argues that as abolitionists litigate to stop death sentences and executions, we must remember that the fight must ultimately be won in the political arena rather than only in the courts.