Talk about Anger

Are victims' family members who oppose the death penalty so full of understanding and compassion that they never feel anger or outrage? In the latest issue of our newsletter, victims' families speak to this question:

I think sometimes when the anti-death penalty movement tells the stories of victims’ families who oppose the death penalty, there isn’t enough attention given to the anger that we have felt. It’s normal to feel that way, and it’s not like people who have gotten through it are better than people who haven’t.

I wish the psychiatrist had known to say to me, “It’s normal to cry so much you can’t function. It’s normal to be so angry you can barely breathe.” I don’t think we talk about the anger enough; victims’ families need to know that the anger is OK, that we have to go through it.