Arendt and Holding Criminals Accountable

Karen Tsdj, a member of the public, recently sent us a picture of her personal Arendt library. That image is displayed below:

Below is an excerpt from Karen's thought paper (inspired by Arendt) on Adolf Eichmann and George Zimmerman, which was written the summer the latter was acquitted for the killing of Trayvon Martin:

Arendt refused to call Eichmann a monster. She wanted him tried and found guilty based on his actions. Without needing to prove whether or not Eichmann was anti-Semitic, justice could be served by proving his culpability in the deaths of thousands of people beyond reasonable doubt. It does not matter that he was just “following the law” or "doing his job well”. He was guilty of taking part in the killings. That was enough to find him guilty.

Similarly, George Zimmerman was guilty of killing Trayvon Martin beyond reasonable doubt. Whether or not he was a racist, or “his heart was in the right place” (Juror B37), or he was standing his ground to defend himself, there was no doubt that he shot and killed Martin. If those factors could be proven, they might shape the sentence but not the verdict. And in this civilized society where we are all held accountable for our actions, Zimmerman should have been held accountable for Martin’s death. The “not guilty” verdict implied that he was not responsible for Martin’s death. Ridiculous? Yet it happened. How? Because Arendt’s warning was not heeded: to recognize and regulate evil even in its banality. We do not need people to be monsters, or anti-Semites, or racists, in order to hold them accountable for their actions. Referring to Taylor, an American lawyer and counsel at the Nuremberg Trials, Arendt stated that a criminal proceeding could be warranted in order to protect the community whose law has been violated. Is not the taking of a life the very basic law in a community that Zimmerman violated? That Eichmann arrogated?

Does it matter if George Zimmerman was no more a monster than Eichmann was? Whether Eichmann was anti-Semitic or not, we will never know. Whether Zimmerman was a racist or not, we will never really know. We can surmise, we can guess and deduce. But a court of law need not know the hearts of individuals to hold them responsible. Defendants are held accountable for what they did, not what they felt or thought. It is what they do about what they felt and thought that the court has jurisdiction to judge and sentence them.

On one hand, Eichmann was indicted for an atrocity much bigger than him. Much to Arendt’s dismay, the Jerusalem court in Eichmann’s trial wanted to use the trial to serve the Zionist agenda, and not just to hold Eichmann accountable for his action, but for the centuries of suffering that the Jewish people went through. By muddling the issue, Eichmann was ironically correct in stating that he was made the scapegoat for the anti-Semitism that resulted in the Holocaust. In effect, the victimization of the Jewish people was highlighted more than the horrendous acts themselves.

On the other hand, Zimmerman was acquitted on an atrocity much bigger than him. Although he already admitted to killing Martin, he was not willing to be accountable, as manifested by is “not guilty” plea, and he was not held accountable for his action. Judge Nelson rightly insisted that race would not be the issue in her court. Her court would not be the site where centuries of racial tension would be resolved. Yet the defense focused on the non-malicious/non-racist motive of Zimmerman while the prosecution focused on the victim, and the process of how the incident took place. By muddling the issue, the jury assumed it had to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Zimmerman had malice, instead of the fact that Zimmerman killed Martin. By focusing and casting doubts on Zimmerman’s motive instead of his culpability in Martin’s death, the defense was able to get Zimmerman acquitted. In effect, Zimmerman was not responsible for Martin’s death. Who was, then?

With Arendt, I weep.

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