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Death Penalty - The Abolition in Virginia

                              Steve Helber - AP Quick History The Death Penalty is a inhumane way of punishing people which has existed for centuries. From the 18 Century B.C., the Code of King Hammurabi established the death penalty legally. As time progressed, more governments added the death penalty as a punishment for crimes, such as the Ancient Greeks and Romans. Around the 10th century, Britain started to incorporate executions as punishments for crimes. As Britain started to migrate to the Americas, they influenced the concept of the Death Penalty in the United States. The first person to be a victim of the Death Penalty was in our state, Virginia, in 1608. Virginia, the first state to use capital punishment, also has a higher percentage of prisoners on death-row than any other state. Furthermore, it has executed more people than any other state in the U.S., 113 people si...
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With Joe Biden as president-elect, what are the policies for the future that MFOL supports?

       Image Source: USA Today Welcome! This last November our country came together to vote. With people voting from mail-in ballots to in-person Election Day voting, 155+ million citizens represented themselves and others. A majority of us are aware of the long-drawn-out process that took place to confirm the results, but it has come to an end, as former Vice-President Joe Biden is 45th president-elect.  As a chapter in March For Our Lives, it feels as if it is our duty to inform those of what we advocate for and what we support. Even though we are a recently formed chapter, all of our members had expressed their voices in the past about what they believe in. The past 4 years, there have been major changes in the government which have set us back in time. As a collective, we believe this new presidency can lead to reform that will benefit the general public and help American become safer and stronger, together. Climate Change It’s important to recognize Climat...

Qualified Immunity - End it

In Virginia, the law states that “Neither the Commonwealth…, nor federal agencies..., except in cases of willful misconduct,... engaged in any emergency services activities, while complying with or attempting to comply with… any rule, regulation, or executive order… shall be liable for the death of, or any injury to, persons or damage to property as a result of such activities.” This law protects federal officers from taking responsibility for violating a person’s rights. The reason why this law is so important to talk about is because of these four U’s: It is Unfair, makes officers Unaccountable, it is Unjustifiable, and, most importantly, it is Unlawful.  Qualified Immunity is an unfair law in the Virginia government because it does not compensate people who were affected by an officer’s actions. When a law enforcement official infringes upon someone’s civil rights, the person affected by the official’s actions should be reimbursed for what they had to endure. However, because o...

Who, What, Where, Why?

Welcome to the first blog post of March For Our Lives Ashburn! These past few months have taken our country by storm. After the countless amount of attacks and killings against Black Americans, we all raise our voices. The Black Lives Matter movement influenced us to create a chapter in Ashburn, Virginia.  What is March For Our Lives (MFOL)? It’s a student-based organization that engages it’s chapters to create change. It supports legislation to prevent gun violence in the United States. It supports legislation for law enforcement reform. It supports legislation to create mental health programs for those in need. All of these changes add up to making a peace plan to create a safer America.  Our goal at MFOL Ashburn is to spread awareness and information throughout our community. Currently, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we will be taking a different approach than most chapters. We are fully focused on pushing our information through social media and hosting virtual events. That...