Clemency and justice have been top of mind lately, with GOP presidential candidates Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis musing about pardoning people convicted in the violent Jan. 6 Capitol attack if elected in 2024.
But an arguably less closely watched matter of politicians righting perceived wrongs took place in Connecticut last week, with a state Senate resolution absolving people convicted of “witchcraft” during America’s Colonial era.
Bet you weren’t expecting that.
It actually gets stranger from there. But first, here’s the gist of what happened, according to The Associated Press:
With distant family members looking on, Connecticut senators voted Thursday to absolve the 12 women and men convicted of witchcraft — 11 of whom were executed — more than 370 years ago and apologize for the “miscarriage of justice” that occurred over a dark 15-year-period of the state’s colonial history.
Where it gets stranger is that this seemingly uncontroversial vote wasn’t unanimous. That is, a lone state senator couldn’t stomach righting this clear historical wrong. But the explanation of why that Republican, Rob Sampson, went it alone, is actually worse than the vote itself. Again, according to the AP, Sampson said it was wrong and even childlike to suggest that “somehow we have a right to dictate what was right or wrong about periods in the past that we have no knowledge of.”
Sampson’s rationale, such as it is, raises multiple questions. I won’t attempt to answer or even raise them all here. But a couple that come to mind: Does the state senator know that witchcraft wasn’t real? Relatedly, does he think it was possibly “right” to execute people accused of it? I left a message for his office; I’m a little afraid to hear the answer if they call back, but I’ll keep you all posted if they do.
Granted, when it comes to having no knowledge or semblance of moral judgment, the GOP politician may have caught the book ban fever that’s sweeping his party. And it’s true that historical mysteries abound — this just isn’t one of them.
When future generations judge his vote, the state senator might hope they take a similarly ignorant view.
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