Yang: In Defense of Dignity
Two things in life are inevitable — death and taxes. While taxes differ for Americans and Europeans, the reality of death applies to each universally. The aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo shooting, however, illustrates the strange fact that the rights of the dead — particularly those who have committed terroristic acts — are wildly divergent between the U.S. and France. In the wake of the shooting, French laws regarding proper burials for anyone, regardless of what they did while alive, stand in stark and unflattering contrast to America’s vengeful habit of refusing respectful burials to certain deceased individuals.