Editorial: ‘Hanging by Invitation: Capital Punishment, The Carceral Archipelago and Escalating Homicide Rates in the Caribbean and Africa’

Abstract

The escalating rate of violent crime in the Caribbean has prompted calls for the resumption of capital punishment as an appropriate response. This paper reviews the philosophical debates and statistical evidence of the effects of previous executions on the rates of homicide and concludes that the role of the Privy Council in permitting capital punishment in the Caribbean allows us to critically reflect on the theory of industrialization by invitation that was attributed to Sir Arthur Lewis. A comparative analysis of evidence from other parts of the world would be used to present a case for the abolition of capital punishment in the Caribbean and Africa.