Summary

Texas Republican Valentina Gomez sparked outrage after releasing a video proposing public executions of undocumented immigrants who commit violent crimes, claiming it would act as a deterrent.

The video, shared on X, simulated Gomez shooting a hooded dummy representing an undocumented migrant.

Her comments followed the arrest of a Guatemalan immigrant for a subway murder in New York.

Known for far-right provocations, Gomez’s remarks drew sharp criticism from political figures and activists, with some praising her stance while others condemned it as hateful and extreme.

  • lennivelkant
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    20 hours ago

    When even the Department Of Justice publishes reports that more severe punishments, explicitly including death sentences, don’t work for deterrence (see points 4 and 5 of their summary), people really should start thinking about better ways to prevent crime.

    (Personally, I’d propose tackling the conditions that force crimes, particularly those of desperation, as well as reevaluating the catalogue of what really counts as crimes, particularly if there’s no victim, but on here, I’d be preaching to the choir.)

    • bitjunkie@lemmy.world
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      15 hours ago

      tackling the conditions that force crimes, particularly those of desperation

      aka corpos making less money, never happen

    • kava@lemmy.world
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      15 hours ago

      honestly i’m a little radical here. i think we should totally eliminate prisons

      there should be two fundamental types of crimes

      1. ones that are forgivable and we deem the individual capable of rehabilitation

      2. ones that are unforgivable and we deem the individual incapable

      in the 2nd case, we should just execute quickly and quietly. this should be reserved for the extreme cases. you know, those guys that chop up their parents and start eating their ears or the ones that abduct little girls for who knows what. what qualifies for this can be debated, i’m not surely exactly where we draw the line. for example should rape count? should a murder of passion count? i don’t know

      in the first case, we should take all the money we spend on prisons and instead focus it into rehabilitation programs. so for example let’s say an addict is caught shoplifting. instead of hauling them off to prison, forcibly put them in a rehab center to detox. then put them in some sort of public housing and give them a job, give them free methadone, etc.