Beaten up and handcuffed, Shaka Sankofa, Gary Graham was executed by the state last night at 8:49 Texas time. He reportedly kept his vow to fight like hell when the authorities tried to strap him to the gurney. He had refused to eat his final meal on the table of those who would execute him. And when it came time for him to be transferred to the room where he would die, he resisted. The prison sent in what they called a Cell Extraction Team to remove him by force. It took five jail guards to strap him to the gurney. Handcuffed, Graham gave a six-minute statement, in which he asserted his innocence and called his execution a lynching. He reportedly died looking at the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who was a witness in the chamber. His final words, "They are murdering me tonight."
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By Amy Goodman with Denis Moynihan
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