Tag: Amnesty International

Hell holes in the U.S.

Posted on by kathiemm

Guantanamo may be the most well-known symbol of government-sponsored torture of prisoners, but the horrors of Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib take place right in your back yard—conveniently hidden in high-walled prisons.

Prison
Image in public domain.

In today’s post we provide some of the facts about torture in the U.S. prison system, along with links to articles and videos that document the torture and its horrendous effects.

 Facts

  • “The US incarcerates more people than any other country in the world, sometimes imposing very long sentences marred by racial disparities.” Human Rights Watch
  • Thousands of American prisoners are kept in solitary confinement, a state of extreme isolation and sensory deprivation, which is itself an extremely destructive form of torture.
  • Like the prisoners in Guantanamo, some prisoners are driven by desperation to stage hunger strikes to try to bring attention to their inhumane treatment.
  • A substantial number of the tortured prisoners, including the ones in solitary confinement, are youth under the age of 18.
  • Some of these children are girls
  • Their stories are heartbreaking—from child abuse by their families to child abuse in detention facilities.
  • Many of the prisoners are mentally ill. Instead of getting treatment, they get tortured. N.B. This video is very graphic and disturbing

Organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union, Human Rights Watch, the National Religious Campaign Against Torture, and Amnesty International work tirelessly to end torture, including in U.S. prisons. They deserve our thanks and support.

To learn more about torture in U.S. prisons, see Torture in Your Backyard, a powerful video from the National Religious Campaign Against Torture.

And read this report (opens in pdf) from the American Friends Service Committee.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

Valentine’s Day messages for peace

Posted on by kathiemm

Today is Valentine’s Day, a day to embrace love over hate, non-violence over death and destruction, peace over war.

Many groups that embrace an ethic of peace and social justice focus some of their creative energy and dedication to Valentine’s Day messages, and these are particularly appropriate during the Season of Nonviolence.

The V-Day movement, an international effort to end violence against women, began in 1998 with one event and this year involves more than 1500 events in at least 140 countries. Working with other organizations dedicated to non-violent social change, they are the sponsors of One Billion Rising.

One Billion Rising is urging “ONE BILLION women and those who love them to WALK OUT, DANCE, RISE UP, and DEMAND an end to violence against women” today and every day.

United to End Genocide plans to deliver a valentine to the National Rifle Association (NRA) saying, “Have a heart: Don’t Kill the Arms Trade Treaty.” My name will be on that valentine. How about yours?  You can learn more about United to End Genocide by watching this video.

United to End Genocide is joined in this Valentine’s Day Plan by the Win Without War Coalition, which includes groups such as the American Friends Service Committee, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Council for a Livable World, Greenpeace,  the NAACP, NOW, and Psychologists for Social Responsibility.

The Women’s Human Rights Program of Amnesty International USA plans to deliver a Valentine’s Day message to Congress, reminding them that all women deserve to live a life free from violence. So do all men.

Enjoy the day, spread love, and find a way to join the singing and dancing of the One Billion Rising movement.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

A day that should live in infamy

Posted on by kathiemm

January 12, 2012, is the 10th anniversary of the day when terrorism suspects were subjected to indefinite incarceration in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, generally in the absence of any charges or trial.

U.S. authorities admit to the detention of 779 detainees, at least 12 of whom were younger than 18 when detained. Eight died while in detention, six purportedly by suicide.

In 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the detainees “had the right to challenge the lawfulness of their detention,” but by then over 500 of them had been transferred out of Guantanamo, according to an Amnesty International media briefing, 16 December 2011. Wonder why?

Most Americans have probably heard that detainees at Guantanamo were subjected to many forms of assault identified as torture in international law, plus what the military calls “soft torture”—for example, incessantly blasting the prisoners with loud rock songs such as (please pardon the shocking verbatim quote) “Fuck Your God.”

Think of waterboarding, hanging victims by their wrists for hours, terrifying them with vicious dogs. What would you want to do if someone did that to your friends, or family, or members of your community?

A boston.com article about President Obama on January 22, 2009, said that “He signed executive orders to shut down the Guantanamo Bay terrorist detention center within a year and to ban harsh interrogations…” The article also reported that Obama’s incoming director of national intelligence, Retired Admiral Dennis Blair, told Congress that the detention center is “a damaging symbol to the world [and] a rallying cry for terrorist recruitment and harmful to our national security.”

Good ideas, but the detention center still has more than 100 prisoners. Time for a change? This coming Wednesday, January 11, will be a National Day of Action to Close Guantanamo; there will be nonviolent actions across the country, with a major demonstration planned in Washington, DC. Please support these efforts in mind and heart if not in action.

For additional resources, see:

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

Humiliation: Terry Jones and the deadliest of emotions

Posted on by kathiemm
Poster of Terry Jones: Intolerance breeds hatred
Poster by Eric Gulliver, 2011

If you have ever been deeply humiliated—by a schoolyard bully, members of a gang, even a loved one—you know what feelings of powerlessness and rage can beset you. Humiliation is exactly what was done by Pastor Terry Jones when he followed through on his threat to burn the Qu’ran last week.

Sadly, Jones has achieved many of his probable goals: he has proven himself able to defy that bugaboo, the government; he has gained notoriety as a crusader for the supremacy of his hate-filled form of Christianity; he has incited the violence he knew he would incite, thereby making a few small groups of Muslims look like vicious animals.

The dangers of humiliation are many:

  • Amnesty International has designated humiliation as psychological torture, along with sleep deprivation, isolation, and mock executions.
  • Efforts at humiliating the enemy in times of armed conflict can also take a markedly physical form, as when the armed forces of one side rape the women of the other side.

Humiliation has been widely recognized as an experience that can lead to many forms of violent confrontation, including war and terrorism.  For example:

  • Many historians believe that humiliation of the German people at the end of World War I  led to the rise of Hitler and World War II. Allied powers were sufficiently convinced by this argument to prevent a similar humiliation of the defeated powers after World War II.
  • Perceptions of historical injustice and humiliation have been identified as factors leading to suicide bombing and other forms of terrorism. When individuals and groups believe that they have been repeatedly and unjustifiably humiliated, they may decide they have nothing to lose by committing violent and punitive acts of revenge.

Let us all work to be sure that Pastor Terry Jones does not achieve what is likely his ultimate goal–a genocidal attack on Muslims.  Let us hope that he is jailed for the rest of his life for violating international law and the dignity of adherents to Islam.

Let us also consider alternative ways to cope with people who frighten and anger us. I will have some suggestions on that topic in Thursday’s post.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology