A new campaign to kill the death penalty was unveiled last night in Lehman Hall.

"We are not winning this battle right now, and I think we've got to turn the tide," said Brown University professor William Keach at the press conference.

Activists for The Campaign to End the Death Penalty hope to galvanize public support for ending capital punishment in this country.

Former Black Panther and former death row prisoner Lawrence Hayes and Robert Meeropol, the son of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, who were executed in 1953 for conspiring "to steal the secret of the atomic bomb," also spoke at the panel.

The speakers said that the death penalty is barbaric and should be abolished.

"We, as citizens of this country, have a responsibility to promote civilization, not only in ourselves, but in our government," Hayes said.

Meeropol, whose parents were executed when he was six years old, emphasized the devastating effect of the death penalty on the families of the prisoners.

"How can a child who was just about six years old understand such events?" said Meeropol, who says he still cringes at the sight of the number 619. His parents were executed on June 19.

A brochure published by the group, which includes renowned academics such as Harvard's own Cornel West '74, says almost 3,000 prisoners are currently on death row, more than at any other time in U.S. history.

The death penalty was reinstated in the United States in 1976.

The panelists also spoke about the inequality of the death penalty and the need to change the political mood in this country.

Keach said that while many politicians speak of getting tough on crime, "this comes at a time when there is no major upsurge in crime."

"I don't think it's a coincidence that [those who receive the death penalty] are the same people in society who are suffering from cuts in welfare," he said.

Hayes said that the government needs to take a more active role in preventing the type of behavior that leads people to commit crimes.

"Don't get me wrong, but government does have some responsi- bility to be an example," Hayes said. "And ours is a bad example."

West, professor of Afro-American studies and professor of the philosophy of religion, was unable to attend the press conference as scheduled. However, he said in an interview yesterday that the death penalty is "mean-spirited" and "cold-hearted."

"Good democrats always want to hold back on the possibility of mean-spiritedness and cold-heartedness," said West, who said he is a long-time opponent of the death penalty.

The speakers said they hope to begin grass roots movements across the country to combat the death penalty.

"We need to organize an activist's campaign that puts pressure from below on politicians," said Keach, who is also a member of the International Socialists Organization (ISO).

The ISO initiated this new movement, but the campaign has since become independent and is sponsored by dozens of organizations across the nation.

The speakers said they are willing to work with other groups to abolish the death penalty.

"I'll sit down with anybody trying to do some good on one particular issue," West said.

Boston University Emeritus Professor Howard Zinn, who had been scheduled to speak at the press conference, was also unable to attend