THE GUANTÁNAMO PHENOMENON

Guantánamo is a sui generis phenomenon because its creation revealed a preexisting but unacknowledged weakness in the rule of law and its continued existence actively degrades the rule of law, and even the hard-won principle of universal humanity. The Guantánamo phenomenon in its first phase was fortified by a radical but “official” interpretation of presidential power. The CIA’s secret torture program “migrated” to Guantánamo, and the torture policy became and remain brick and mortar of Guantánamo. Across four administrations, the US government has strived to make the torture of people on trial irrelevant to the goal of convicting them. While this policy has yet to yield any wins, neither has it been acknowledged as an abject failure.

Co-sponsored by:
the McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives, the Nexus Program on Law, Public Policy and Human Rights, the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, and the Department of International Relations at MHC