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unplug
unplug magazine asks you to unplug from your current modes of thought and look at life in a new way, whether this means unplugging from our toxic consumer culture, mainstream society, the tv, or a limiting mindset. author megan prusynski explores life's alternatives and discusses activism, progressive thinking, and moving towards a "green" & sustainable life.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Help Find Habeas Corpus
Habeas Corpus is missing, and the ACLU has launched a campaign to find him.
Who is Habeas? Well, he's not really a missing person, but the ACLU has personified him in their campaign because he is indeed missing - ever since the Military Commissions Act of 2006 was passed. Habeas Corpus has been an integral part of democracy since the thirteenth century. According to Wikipedia,
"In common law, habeas corpus is the name of a legal action or writ by means of which detainees can seek relief from unlawful imprisonment. The writ of habeas corpus has historically been an important instrument for the safeguarding of individual freedom against arbitrary state action."
Since individual freedom and rights are (or at least should be) a central part of a democratic government, one would think that it would be too precious to remove from the lawbooks. But, just before the 2006 election, the United States government did just that. Certain detainees can now be legally imprisoned without being charged or given a justification for their imprisonment, denied court review or legal help, and tortured in ways that violate the Geneva Conventions. As part of the "War on Terror," the Military Commissions Act allows the horrible abuses at Guantanamo Bay to continue without consequence, and without due process, it is certain that we are holding innocent people behind bars. In fact, the Bush Administration has acknowledged that many Guantanamo Bay prisoners are not even terrorists!
For an inside look at what prisoners at Guantanamo Bay go through, I suggest watching The Road to Guantanamo, a movie about a group of friends who end up in Guantanamo simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The human rights abuses that are very common at Guantanamo Bay have drawn outcry from many organizations, such as Amnesty International, that demand the prison be closed.
The dissolving of Habeas Corpus and the mere existence of a place as horrible as Guantanamo Bay beg the question: Is the United States even a democracy any more? At the rate things are going, we really can't call ourselves a democracy. It's starting to smell like fascism to me...
Labels: human rights, news/current events, politics
