Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Before 5pm EST tomorrow: Close Guantanamo

 I got this from Amnesty International:

 http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/site/c.6oJCLQPAJiJUG/b.8718351/k.85A4/Urge_Your_Representative_to_Vote_YES_on_the_Smith_Amendment_to_Close_Guantanamo.htm?msource=W1306EHSHR1

Dear Tracy,

Angry. That's how I felt when President Obama signed the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) into law, despite containing terrible provisions that run afoul of human rights standards and have been used to justify indefinite detention at Guantanamo.

Well, the NDAA is back in the House of Representatives this week and the bad Guantanamo provisions are in it again. Will you join me in demanding that Congress support the human rights of all people?

Pick up the phone and tell your Representative to support closing Guantanamo -- but you must call before 5pm EST TOMORROW!

The choices are clear: each detainee must either be a) charged and fairly tried in federal court or b) released. This isn't just about the detainees. The right to be free from arbitrary detention and the right to a fair trial protects all of us from abuse.

Even though President Obama has once again re-affirmed his commitment to close Guantanamo, our work is far from over. We've heard this talk before -- in fact, it was the President himself who made it more difficult to close the detention facility by signing last year's NDAA into law.

The only way we're ever going to truly end this terrible chapter of our history is by starting a new one that embraces human rights. It begins with a phone call to your elected official now.

Please place a call to your Representative then tell us how it went. Report back so the next time we meet with your elected official, we can amplify your voice and ensure that our message is being heard loud and clear.

Thank you for all that you do.

Zeke Johnson
Director, Security & Human Rights Program
Amnesty International USA

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