To: Civil Rights, Crime and Justice, and Militarism Advocates
From: Gabe Schlabach, MCC Washington Office
Date: May 7, 2008

Issue:

Recently declassified documents show that the U.S. military and intelligence services began torturing military prisoners following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Join together with congregations all over the United States by taking part in the National Religious Campaign Against Torture’s (NRCAT) Banners Across America Project.

Background:

In 2004, disturbing reports began arriving from Iraq. The infamous Abu Ghraib prison, which Saddam Hussein had used to torture political prisoners, was being used by the U.S. military for the same purpose. Soon ghastly images appeared – images of U.S. soldiers humiliating, torturing, and killing Iraqi prisoners.

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld quickly asserted that the images emanating from Abu Ghraib were anomalies: the result of “a few bad apples,” not an institutional problem within the U.S. armed forces. The Bush Administration contended that torture was not the policy of the United States of America.

However, internal Justice Department memos declassified in April reveal that the administration did approve the use of “enhanced interrogation methods” – a euphemism for actions defined as torture in the Geneva Convention. ABC News reported on April 9 that high-ranking government officials, including the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense and the CIA Director, were directly involved in talks related to this policy shift, which was approved by the president.

Faith Reflection:

Genesis 1:27 states that all human beings – men and women – are created in God’s own image. Torture violates human dignity, and is an affront to God’s creation. Additionally, Anabaptist theology speaks out against the use of violence, and torture is at its very core a form of violence: the abuse of the powerless by the powerful. Christians should consistently speak out against the use of torture and other crimes against humanity.

Action:

Have your church make a statement that torture is morally abhorrent and unacceptable, no matter the circumstances and no matter the terms used to describe it. Participate in the National Religious Campaign Against Torture’s (NRCAT) Banners Across America Project in June, placing a “Torture is Wrong” banner outside your church. Be part of a faithful witness that opposes any infringement on human rights, even when done by our own government.