NY Events by the Center for Constitutional Rights - 4/17 and 4/19

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Dear Zeeshan, Please join us for one or both of these exciting events. Racism, the Criminal Justice System and Guantánamo Bay: Imprisonment and the Prison-Industrial Complex Date and time: Thursday, April 19, 2007, @7:00 PM Location: St. Mary's Church- 521 W. 126th St., NYC CCR attorney Gita Gutierrez, the first civilian attorney to visit Guantánamo Bay, will participate in a panel discussion exploring the similarities between imprisonment and criminalization in New York City and that in Guantánamo Bay. (details below) and... disAPPEARing justice? Date and time: Tuesday, April 17, 2007, 7:30pm Location: The Calhoun School- 433 West End Ave at 81st St., NYC Former CCR legal Director Bill Goodman will participate in an expert panel discussion on the conflict between those who argue that our civil liberties are being erased versus those who believe changes are vital in order to protect the very liberties we enjoy as Americans.(details below) DETAILS The Center for Constitutional Rights presents the latest event in our series: DETENTION, RACISM, WAR: Struggles for Justice, from our communities to Guantánamo Bay Racism, the Criminal Justice System and Guantánamo Bay Thursday, April 19, 2007 7:00 PM St. Mary's Church 521 W. 126th St., NYC Subway: 1/A/B/C/D to 125th FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC! Join us on Thursday, April 19, 2007, for an exciting panel of speakers from the legal and activist communities confronting imprisonment and criminalization in New York City and in Guantanámo Bay, including: Gitanjali Gutierrez, Center for Constitutional Rights Chino Hardin, Prison Moratorium Project Judith Greene, researcher on sentencing and imprisonment Rafael Mutis, JusticeWorks Community Seven Neighborhood Action Project Reginald Gossett, Critical Resistance And more! Explore the connections between imprisonment here and the acceptance of arbitrary detention at Guantanamo, and find out what you can do to support struggles for justice! For more information about this event, please contact Lynne Kates at LKates@ccr-ny.org or call 212-614-6443. disAPPEARing JUSTICE? An expert panel discusses the conflicts between those who argue that our civil liberties are being erased vs. those who believe changes are vital in order to protect the very liberties we enjoy as Americans. Panelists include: Bill Goodman, Former Legal Director, Center for Constitutional Rights Timothy Bakken, Professor of Law, United States Military Academy at West Point James Copland, Director, Center for Legal Policy, Manhattan Institute Beth Haroules, Staff Attorney, NY Civil Liberties Union Udi Ofer, Field Director & Legislative Council, NY Civil Liberties Union DATE AND TIME: Tuesday, April 17, 2007, 7:30pm TICKETS : $10/adults, $5 students & senior citizens RESERVATIONS: RSVP call 212-497-6528 LOCATION: The Mary Lea Johnson Performing Arts Center, The Calhoun School, 433 West End Av (at 81st)

Event: Guantánamo Bay: The Global Effects of Wrongful Detention, Torture, and Unchecked Executive Power - 3/23

The New York City Law Review of City University of New York School of Law cordially invites you to its 2007 symposium:

Guantánamo Bay: The Global Effects of Wrongful Detention, Torture, and Unchecked Executive Power.

Friday, March 23, 2007, New York City

8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Gerald W. Lynch Theater
John Jay College of Criminal Justice
899 Tenth Avenue
(Between West 58th and 59th)
New York, NY 10019

Free and Open to the Public / Offering 7 CLE Credits for $25*

For registration, complete symposium program, and more information, please visit www.nyclawreview.org

This symposium will be the first in the nation to focus solely on the legal issues stemming from the detention of individuals by the United States government in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. The Guantánamo detainees have had a considerable impact on American and international jurisprudence. They have sparked a debate in the wider legal community about the fairness and legality of their detention and treatment: Do they have a right to seek relief from American courts? If so, can such a right be affected by Congress? Do they have any status under international humanitarian law, and if so, what? Should they have protections against torture and coercion? Should they be tried, and if so, when, for what crimes, and under what procedures? If tried, would they then have a right to appeal and, if so, to whom? Should they be released and, if so, when? Will they be tortured by their governments when they are released? What are the powers and proper roles of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the United States government in dealing with the detainees? What is the legal status of detainees being held at locations other than Guantánamo Bay during the "War on Terror?"

The symposium is co-sponsored by the Center for Constitutional Rights, the Center for International Human Rights at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and the CUNY University Student Senate. It will also commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the Center for Constitutional Rights and honor the organization's leading role in protecting and promoting constitutional and human rights.

* This traditional, non-transitional course has been approved in accordance with the requirements of the New York State Continuing Legal Education Board for a maximum of seven (7) credit hours, which can be applied to the Professional Practice requirement. Accredited by CUNY School of Law. Credits are being offered for $25 (payable at the symposium by check/cash). However, a fee waiver for economic hardship is available upon written request by emailing John Hynes at johnhynesr@verizon.net. CLE packet will be made available at www.nyclawreview.org by March 10, 2007, and will be available at the symposium in CD-ROM format. Please download and print this material from the website in advance of the symposium.

2/10 Film screening - Outlawed: Extraordinary Rendition, Torture, and Disappearances in the ‘War on Terror’

OUTLAWED:

Extraordinary Rendition, Torture, and Disappearances in the ‘War on Terror’

Join other concerned students and citizens for a film screening, discussion, and advocacy campaign.

Refreshments provided.

Saturday, February 10, 3-5 PM

CUNY Graduate Center, Room 5414

The Graduate Center, The City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016-4309

Outlawed tells the stories of Khaled El-Masri and Binyam Mohamed, two men who have survived torture by the U.S. government working with various other governments wo rldwide. It features relevant commentary from Louise Arbour, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, U.S. President George W. Bush, Michael Scheuer, the chief architect of the rendition program and former head of the Osama Bin Laden unit at the CIA, and Condoleezza Rice, the U.S. Secretary of State.

This event is organized by the Americans for Informed Democracy Chapter at CUNY Grad Center and supported thanks to a generous grant from the JEHT Foundation. The film is produced by Witness.

Conference on Guantanamo Bay, human rights and civil liberties - 2/10

Dear friends,

I'm writing to inform you of a conference that will be taking place this Saturday, February 10 at the CUNY Graduate Center (365 Fifth Avenue, between 34th and 35th sts.) from 1-3 P.M. (followed by a video screening of the documentary "Outlawed"). I would appreciate it if you could forward the information to students or anyone else you think may be interested.

The focus of the event is Guantanamo Bay and post-9/11 civil liberties in America. Adem Carroll of the Muslim Consultative Network and Lynne Kates from the Center for Constitutional Rights will be speaking on their work with the Guantanamo issue and civil liberties in general as well as giving advice to students interested in careers in the field. In addition to this specific topic, we want to address the disconnect between expert opinion on these types of issues and actual U.S. policy, in an attempt to learn how to make our careers as influential as possible.

The conference will be open to 20-25 qualified students, giving them a chance to have all of their questions answered and ideas critiqued, as well as offering great networking opportunities.

An invitation is below, and I would greatly appreciate it if you would forward it to students you think may be interested.

Thank you in advance for your support,

Zeeshan Suhail

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Saturday, February 10, 2007
1 PM
at the CUNY Graduate Center

Guantanamo Bay & Post-9/11 Civil Liberties in America

Who are the most influential figures when it comes to U.S. decisions affecting civil liberties? How do we balance civil liberties with national security concerns after the 9/11 attacks? How can we impact positive, meaningful change when states are listening less and less to their citizenry?

Adem Carroll (Muslim Consultative Network) will speak on infringement on rights and liberties of Muslims after 9/11

Lynn Kates (Center for Constitutional Rights) will speak on the state of affairs of civil liberties and human rights at Guantanamo Bay (and elsewhere) after 9/11

A brief panel discussion will be followed by an open dialogue between the experts and attendees. Come share your views on Guantanamo and civil liberties in America and find out how to have the most impact on U.S. security policy.

Please RSVP with a short bio to clmadden@gmail.com for details.

U.S. Has Lost Credibility On Rights: HRW; Ban echoes Annan on Gitmo closure

Gitmo has gotten next to no media coverage this week, even though there was really no other international crisis to report on; it was essentially business as usual for the media monster, yet they still didn't jump on the opportunity to cover such an important anniversary/commemoration.

After yesterday's column and numerous blog postings on the topic of Guantanamo Bay, I was heartened to see Human Rights Watch come out with a scathing report on human rights violations by countries the world over. But the criticism directed at the US had me in raptures because, along with it, came a recommendation that the EU take a lead in the promotion of human rights and civil liberties - since the US obviously has veered off the track on this point.

I've said enough, and can say more, but instead, will direct your attention to two articles. One on HRW's report in today's Washington Post, and the other in the Washington Times regarding the United Nations' new Secretary-General's call to close the camp. He's not saying anything new; his reiteration of his predecessors call for the closure of the camp is honorable and appropriate at this time, but what I found interesting was that the author of the article was present at the SG's press conference where he made those statements, and of all the things she could have covered in the article (at least 15 issues), she chose Ban's call for the closure of the camp (a 2 minute segment of the press conference). The Washington Times is a conservative newspaper that doesn't always report on the good stuff the UN does and so this came as a pleasant surprise in some ways. Then again, they could be implicitly pitching Ban against the US. With the media, you never know!

Happy reading!

My article: "Guantanamo: the terror lives on"

January 11th marks the day when Gutananamo Bay received its first inmates five years ago. Just a few months ago, we commemorated the 5th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, and now, on a much smaller level, a much smaller group of people are commemorating the demise of human rights and civil liberties in the nation that championed those causes for centuries.

I have been extremely depressed and distressed at the situation at hand. After reading numerous books on Gitmo, and after having finished one just last night, I find myself in a constant state of anxiety and suffer from mild headaches every now and then. How can this country let such an atrocity go on? My anger at American human rights violations knows no bounds. The only thing that can anger me more is the double standards we continue to propagate the world over.

I can go on and on and invite comments - constructive and destructive - but will instead draw your attention to the article I've copied below which was published in the Pakistani newspaper I write a column for, The Post.

Waiting for a miracle - or a revolution?

Guantanamo: the terror lives on

I have been living in the US for several years now, but have failed to understand the recent and highly disturbing trend that can be observed in this country regarding human rights violations. The country that once prided itself on being a beacon for those seeking the protection and enjoyment of those rights is today the same country that blatantly violates them. The US is no longer a harbinger of hope for those who are persecuted the world over; instead, it inspires deadly fear and anxiety and has lost the stature it once held in a world already plagued with countless wrongs.

A constant reminder of this negative role the US is now playing in the realm of human rights is none other than the very existence of Guantanamo Bay. I have written about Guantanamo numerous times before in this column space. It has mostly been because all, if not the vast majority, of the detainees are Muslims of Arab or South Asian heritage. In solidarity, I stood with them, writing articles like the one you are reading right now, hoping someone, somewhere would read it and contact an influential member of their social circle or community, and help spread the word about the atrocities going on in the name of national security and protection of civilians.

But alas, today, Americans are no better protected than they were before 9/11. In fact, the world is an even more treacherous place, perhaps more so because of the blatant human rights violations going on in places like Guantanamo. These gross injustices give fuel to the fire of terrorism that threatens to rip across the Muslim world if we do not contain it soon.

And yet, the American authorities do not realize how simple it is to both uphold these sacred values they helped enshrine, and to still wage a much-needed war against terrorism and terrorists. If only these officials knew that this process begins with respect; respect for life, for civilization, for values. In its blind quest for superiority and supremacy in anything and everything, the US forgot that greed and selfishness can only harm those who indulge in these acts.

Guantanamo is the antithesis of everything Americans hold sacred. Yet today, as we commemorate the day it received its first inmates five years ago, it stands tall and proud as the tarnished image of what the new US has come to reflect: double standards, hypocrisy and the alarming disrespect for things the civilised world holds in high esteem. While over 500 Muslim men languish in conditions we shudder to think of, the US continues to export torture to other countries. In the 21st century, torture has officially become an exportable commodity, the product of a few decades of poor policy that remains unchanged. As if it was not bad enough that Americans are indulging in this horrific act, they are coercing other countries to pursue similar policies.

Guantanamo has, for many months, been eliminated from the international agenda. We no longer see human rights experts calling for its closure, or for the due trial of its inhabitants. Instead, Britney Spears’ misdeeds are splashed all over the pages of newspapers and sensationalism regarding anything that can potentially harm Americans is drilled into our heads as a credible “threat” to our lives. What the American authorities do not realize in their haste to protect their people is that they can do their countrymen a much better service by not only advocating social justice and fairness, but also by proving that they hold these principles close to their hearts for those of other nationalities as well.

Five years after Guantanamo received its first prisoners, I walk the streets of New York City in perpetual fear; Fear that, one day, out of nowhere, I can be picked up off the street, never to be seen again. My tranquility will forever be snatched from me and my dreams will forever be shattered. If places like Guantanamo exist to show us what our future can be, then I will never be able to sleep peacefully at night. If places like Guantanamo exist to ensure my safety and security, then the terror it inspires in my heart must be curbed.

President Bush, I hope you are reading this.