More Than 150 Business Leaders Back Campaign To End Death Penalty
More than 150 business leaders have pledged their support for a campaign working to eradicate capital punishment around the world.
The Business Leaders Against the Death Penalty campaign was launched by Richard Branson, the billionaire founder of Virgin Group, and the Responsible Business Initiative for Justice (RBIJ) earlier this year.
Now, ahead of World Day Against the Death Penalty on October 10, more than 150 signatories—including Facebook's Sheryl Sandberg, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and Arianna Huffington—are backing the campaign aiming to help drive abolition campaigns over the line.
The campaign's declaration decries the death penalty as inhumane, discriminatory, prone to error and ineffective as a deterrent. It notes that half of U.S. states and more than 170 U.N. member states have abolished the death penalty or stopped carrying out death sentences, underscoring a global trend towards abolition.
"Where the death penalty still exists, we urge government leaders to legally commute death sentences, to impose moratoria on executions and to support legislative or ballot initiatives to end capital punishment for good," it says.
"We commit to using our voices and our reach as business leaders to support ending the death penalty everywhere, beginning with signing this declaration."
It's the first time so many leaders from the business community have united in a push to end the death penalty, Celia Ouellette, the CEO of the RBIJ, told Newsweek.
It comes at a time when support for ending capital punishment in the U.S. has never been higher, she said, pointing to Virginia's recent abolition of the death penalty and President Joe Biden's moratorium on federal executions.
"I do think that businesses are increasingly going to put pressure on President Biden to go beyond a moratorium and actually create some lasting change for the death penalty at the federal level," Ouellette added.
Ouellette also said the campaign's backers will be deployed at crucial points in specific abolition campaigns to support reforms and inspire action in collaboration with activists on the ground. She said she hopes the campaign has a direct impact on states like Utah and Ohio, where efforts to abolition the death penalty are underway.
"We're trying to marshal as much energy and leverage from people who are in positions to have influence," Jason Flom, the CEO of Lava Media, told Newsweek.
"To use their voices and their platform to force recalcitrant legislators, decision makers, to do what they should by now know is the right thing, which is abolish the death penalty."
The growing support for the campaign shows that business leaders "increasingly recognize they must be a force for the greater good of society," Branson said.
"By speaking out against the death penalty, they take a stand against one of the most egregious injustices of our time. The voice of business will be critical to end the death penalty once and for all."
Ouellette added: "Lawmakers and decision makers should be paying attention—business leaders are wading into the fray and demanding an end to capital punishment. There's a new incentive for ending the death penalty: abolition is good for business."
To find out more about the campaign, visit www.BusinessAgainstDeathPenalty.org.
The list of signatories:
RICHARD BRANSON Founder, Virgin Group
ADEEL SAEED CEO, Adeel Saeed
ALAN JOPE CEO, Unilever
ALESSANDRO BOGLIOLO Former CEO, Tiffany & Co.
ALEX LOVE Founder and CEO, Alex Love Consulting, LLC
ALI NIAZ Co-Founder, BPureSounds
ALICE DYSON COO, ONE MEDIA IP LTD
ALLAN W MOSKOWITZ CEO, Transformative Wealth Management, LLC
ALPA PATEL Founder and CEO, 9th House
AMANDA PACQUETTE Director, Business2Technology
AMIT AMIN Partner, Amit & Naroop
ANDERS HOLCH POVLSEN CEO, BESTSELLER
ANDRÉ HOFFMAN
ANDREW N. LIVERIS Former Chairman and CEO, Dow Chemical | Founder, Liveris Academy for Leadership and Innovation
ANNE WOJCICKI Co-Founder and CEO, 23andMe, Inc.
ARIANNA HUFFINGTON Founder and CEO, Thrive Global | Co-founder, The Huffington Post
ATITI SOSIMI CEO, Eyato London
BEN COHEN Co-founder, Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream
BERT JACOBS CEO, LIFE IS GOOD
BRAD S. KARP Chairman, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison
BRITTANY DAMICO Senior Business Development Manager, Change Finance
CASEY J. MULLIGAN Owner, Mulligan & Mulligan PLLC
CATHERINE KIMMEL Co-CEO, The Artemis Agency
CHRIS DAW QC Lawyer, Broadcaster and Author of Justice on Trial
CHRISTINA BROOKS Founder and CEO, Ruebik
CHRISTOPHER COX Associate Director, Seventh Generation Interfaith Coalition for Responsible Investment
CHRIS DUTTON Founder, The CEO Magazine
DAN MEYER President and CEO, Nehemiah Manufacturing
DANIEL DART CEO, Dart Capital & Co.
DAVID BRONNER CEO, Dr.Bronner's
DAVID W. CRANE CEO, Climate Real Impact Solutions | Former CEO and President, NRG
DAVID PACQUETTE CEO, Business2Technology
DAVE PHILLIPS
DORRIT LOWSEN President and COO, Change Finance
Dr. MO IBRAHIM Founder, Mobile Systems International | Founder, Celtel | Founding Chairman, Satya Capital Limited | Founder and Chair, Mo Ibrahim Foundation
DR. PHILIP TEE Founder and CEO, Moogsoft Inc
ED FLETCHER Co-Managing Director, Shape History
ELISSA SHUCK President and CEO, ES-STRATEGIC, LLC
ELIZABETH CHAMBERS Operating Partner, Searchlight Capital
ELLIE KANNER CEO, Forever Sunny Productions | Just To Be Clear Productions | The Game Plan Game LLC
EVE WILDRICK Founder and President, Executive Interiors Inc.
FELIX PFREUNDTNER Owner, Xilev UG
FLOYD ALBEE CEO, Prevalent Projects
FRANCOIS-HENRI PINAULT
GARETH PARKER CEO, Raphael Rowe Foundation
GEORGE TURNER Co-Founder and CEO, Carneys Community
GINA LYNELL SMITH Founder, BizDesign.digital
GORI YAHAYA Founder and CEO, UpSkill Digital
GUILHERME LEAL Co-founder and Co-chair Natura & Co | Co-founder Instituto Ethos
HELENE GAYLE, MD, MPH President and CEO, The Chicago Community Trust | Former President & CEO CARE USA
HUBERT JOLY Former Chairman and CEO, Best Buy | Senior Lecturer, Harvard Business School
HUGH LENON Private Equity and Prison Charity Chairman
IQRA SHAIKH Founder and CEO, Tutoring in Teams
ISABELLE KOCHER
JACK D'AURORA Partner, The Behal Law Group LLC
JAMES FELLOWES Founder, The Bridge of Hope (Inclusive Talent Portal)
JARED SMITH Co-founder, Qualtrics
JASON FLOM CEO, Lava Media
JATIN MAHINDRA Founder, Jatin Mahindra
JAUME MIQUEL NAUDI Chairman and CEO, Tendam Global Fashion Retail
JAVIER GARCIA SAZ CEO and Founder, AnunciaWebs
JEAN OELWANG President and Founding CEO Virgin Unite | Former Co-CEO Virgin Mobile Australia
JEFFREY SCALES Managing Principal, JSA Sustainable Wealth Management
JERRY GREENFIELD Co-founder, Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream
JOANNA REES Managing Partner, West Ventures
JOHN C. HARRINGTON President and CEO, Harrington Investments, Inc.
JOHN KAY CEO, Realize Strategies
JOHN O'FARRELL
JOHN REPLOGLE Founding Partner, One Better Ventures | Former CEO, Seventh Generation Inc
JOHN ROST Founder and CEO, Ace Oasis Ltd
JOHN RUSH Founder and CEO, CleanTurn | 180 Demo | Third Way Café
JOHNNY WEBB CEO, HiddenLight Productions
JON WRIGHT Co-Founder, Innocent Drinks
JONATHAN OUELLETTE Co-Founder and Creative Director, KILL 2 BIRDS
JOE DELOSS Founder, Hot Chicken Takeover
JOSH ZINNER CEO, Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility
JULIA ALBEE CFO, Prevalent Projects
JULIO SALINAS LOMBARD Founder and CEO, Salinas Consultores
KATIE DAVIES U.S. Editor, The Independent
KETZ HARIA Director, Dey, King, Haria
KRISTINA TOUZENIS Managing Partner, BST Impact
KRIZ TAN Co-Owner and Director, Alphavertex Communications Pte Ltd
KYLER CARTER Professor of Development Disabilities
L. WILLIAMSON COO, CAA Family Office
LAUREN McCANN Founder and CEO, Calliope Advisors
LOGAN MARTIN President, Skyline Strategies, LLC
LUCKY XAZI Founder, Smart LUX Marketing
MAC BARTINE CEO, SmartRIA
MAMIE KANFER STEWART Founder, Meeteor
MARC BENIOFF Chairman and CEO, Salesforce
MARCUS BULLOCK CEO, Flikshop
MARISA TENDERO Non-Executive Chairwoman, NOABRANDS
MARK HAMADE Co-Founder, CanEth
MARTHA LANE FOX Chair, WeTransfer | Director, Twitter | Director, Chanel | Chancellor, Open University
MARY-CLAIRE MULLIGAN Partner and Director, Trial Litigation
MATTHEW STEPKA Managing Partner, Machina Ventures
MATS GRANRYD
MELISSA FRIESENBOURG Owner, Balanced Spirit Pilates
MERCK MERCURIADIS Founder and CEO, Hipgnosis Songs Fund
MICHAEL CONN Founder, Bigger Than Us
MICHAEL KRAMER Managing Partner, Natural Investments
MICHELLE CIROCCO Chief Impact Officer and Executive Director, Televerde | Televerde Foundation
MIKE NOVOGRATZ Founder and CEO, Galaxy Digital
MILES DALLY CEO, RCL FOODS
MO CHOUMIL CEO, Safi Virtual
MORDECHAI GABAI Head of Studio, Schizotypy Game Development Ltd
NICK McKEOWN
NICOLAS DEBRAY President, Americas, The Body Shop
NICOLAS GIROTTO
NICOLAS PATRICK Global Head of Responsible Business, DLA Piper
OSCAR WESTRA VAN HOLTHE Founder, Teamcoach Zuidas
PAUL GRAHAM Founder, Y Combinator
PAUL J. FRIBOURG
PAUL POLMAN Co-founder and Chair, IMAGINE | Former CEO, Unilever
PEDRO HERNANDES Founder, HBFS
PEDRO PARENTE Chairman and Former CEO, BRF | Founding Partner, EB Capital | Former CEO, Petrobras
PIERRE DUBUC Co-Founder and CEO, OpenClassrooms
RAPHAEL ROWE Founder, Raphael Rowe Foundation
RICCARDO BELLINI President and CEO, Chloe
RIZVAN RAJA Founder and CEO, Rizuma Ltd
ROBERT F. SMITH Founder, Chairman & CEO, Vista Equity Partners
RON CONWAY Founder, SV Angel
RYAN BALL Director, Ryan Ball Photography
SALLY JEWELL Former CEO, REI
SANDRO SALSANO Chairman, Salsano Family Office | President, Salsano Group
SANJAY AGGARWAL Founder and CEO, IPS
SATISH AGGARWAL Founder, S&J Leisure Group
SARA PRICE Founder, Actually
SARAH ADOLPHSON Co-CEO, The Artemis Agency
SARAH BEST CEO, Sarah Best Strategy
SARAI JACOB-WHELAN
SCOTT BUDNICK CEO, One Community | Founder, The Anti-Recidivism Coalition
SHENALY AMIN Director, Iconik Ltd
SHERYL SANDBERG COO, Facebook | Founder, LeanIn.org
SITAL PUNJA Founder, Threads-London
SONIA KOWAL President, Zevin Asset Management
STEFANIE REINHOLD Founder, HorseHaus LLC
STEPHANIE MELODIA CEO, Bloom Consulting Ltd
STEPHEN LUCKMAN Partner, Sheridans
STEVE BENNETT Co-Founder, Health Results
STRIVE MASIYIWA Founder and Executive Chairman, Econet Group
SUSAN OZAWA PEREZ Senior Portfolio Manager, Impact Investors
SUSAN WHITMORE Founder and CEO, Grief Haven
SVEIN TORE HOLSETHER President and CEO, Yara International
SYLVIA COLEMAN Co-Founder and Principal, BPureSounds
TERESA HENNING Director, Moneymasternow
TOM LYTTON-DICKIE Founder and CEO, Meaningful Business
TONY FERNANDES Group Chief Executive Officer, AirAsia Group | Chairman and Founder, Tune Group
VANESSA BAKEWELL Global Client Partner, Facebook
WERNER BAUMANN CEO, Bayer
WOUTER MURRAT Founder, Owner & CEO, MEPILAN VOF
YINKA SONUBI CEO, TJR&M
