Next week, on January 11, the 8th anniversary of the first prisoner arriving at Guantanamo, our friends at Witness Against Torture have organized a 12-day fast in DC to call on the Obama administration to uphold its promise to close the notorious prison and declare their opposition to the inmates continued indefinite detention (without charges or trial) in the US.
According to their press release:
Members of Witness Against Torture will rally in front of the White House at 11:45 a.m. to protest the lack of progress toward justice for detainees since Obama took office and demand from the administration true change. Speakers will announce a 12-Day Fast for Justice in Washington DC, ending on January 22– the Obama administration’s self-declared, and now-voided, deadline for closing Guantanamo.
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After the demonstration, activists will stage a Guantanamo prisoner procession to the National Press Club. There, they will join the Center for Constitutional Rights for a press briefing featuring detainee lawyers and human rights activists. The briefing, led by CCR Executive Director Vince Warren, will include the reading of letters from released and exonerated Guantanamo detainees calling for the prison’s closure and justice for all detainees.
Many of us here at Waging Nonviolence have been involved in past actions organized by Witness Against Torture. They are a phenomenal group of activists, including many from the Catholic Worker movement, who know this issue inside and out. If you can make it to DC, I’m sure it will be a moving experience.