Assassinée pour ses convictions
Speaking of Brendan Cox and Jo Cox…
Street sign in Morlande, a district of Avallon, Burgundy, France. It says: “Jo Cox Street, British MP, assassinated because of her convictions, 22 June 1974 – 16 June 2016.”
In English it would say that.
Untranslated it says
Rue Jo COX
Députée Brittanique
Assassinée pour ses convictions
22 juin 1974-16 juin 2016
H/t Stewart
This is a noble gesture and all, but I think the truth is rather more that Jo Cox was assassinated for (or because of) the convictions—and delusions—of the assassin. Her convictions were far more life-affirming, and not at all those of a martyr.
The convictions of someone who is assassinated don’t have to be those of a martyr – they just have to conflict with those of someone angry enough to think that killing someone of opposing views is a thing to do. In that sense, it is perfectly reasonable to state that she was killed for her convictions.
That’s true, and I’m not trying to diminish her sacrifice or denigrate a memorial of it. But I think it’s important to remember that murderous violence is not a reasonable extrapolation of all convictions, and those for which it is are usually worse than those for which it isn’t.