Minneapolis resident Chuck Turchick reminds us that "accountability for torture is about the soul of our country, yet we hear only silence from our leaders"...
Some government officials say they support those who push for accountability, but there is a lack of political will in Washington to deal with the issue. We respond that Minnesota's most courageous leaders have created, not followed, the political will. Hubert Humphrey on civil rights at the 1948 Democratic National Convention, Eugene McCarthy on the war in Southeast Asia, and Paul Wellstone on the invasion of Iraq were at their best when they opposed the political will in Washington, not succumbed to it.
Chuck is following the various Torture Awareness Month events sponsored by a coalition of anti-torture and human-rights groups in the Twin Cities. Help get the word out about events in your town; forward info and I'll get it up on this blog.
Break the silence.
I feel really dumb. I had been told that June had been designated as "Torture Awareness Month" by the United Nations. That was why it sort of formed the basis of a letter our group wrote to our two senators and two representatives, and the introduction and contrast with our government's silence in the piece linked above. Well, it ain't true.
A member of our group found the following on the website of the National Religious Campaign Against Torture: "June 26th is United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. Several years ago, religious and human rights organizations in the United States declared the month of June to be Torture Awareness Month as a way to provide greater visibility to this issue and provide an opportunity for coordinated actions across the country."
I am sorry about the confusion. Don't believe everything you read on the Internet, especially coming out of Minneapolis, and most especially if it has my name on it.
I think this comment is accurate, but don't hold me to it.