(Click the link below to watch the video montage)
Anti-Guantanamo demonstration in Washington D.C. on January 11, 2015
Every January 11th, on the anniversary of the opening of the Guantanamo prison, human rights activists from around the world converge on Washington, D.C. to demonstrate in front of the White House and march to the Supreme Court and the Department of Justice. Unfortunately, it has become a familiar scene to me (click here to read my blog from last year "Twelve Years too Many"). The orange bodysuits and black hoods that are used in the prison have become the symbols of indefinite detention and torture. Every year, I reach to the back of my closet for my orange suit, hoping that this year would be the last time I have to use it. Every year, I take photos of young and old activists holding signs that say “Is This Who We Are?”; “ Torture is Always Wrong” and “Innocent Until Proven Muslim.” Every year I am reminded that while the civil liberties movement has accomplished so much, there is so much more to be done.
The photos I take are similar from year to year, but this year the movement was also influenced significantly by various seminal events in 2014, including the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson and the islamophobic response to the Charlie Hebdo killings.
13 Years Too Many
The Committee is solely responsible for the contents of this blog. It does not represent the position of the New York State Bar Association unless or until approved by its Executive Committee or House of Delegates.
The author[s] is solely responsible for this blog submission. It does not represent the position of the New York State Bar Association or its Committee.