Center for Constitutional Rights Action Alert: 4th of July Protests

Join us to make this Fourth of July about the values and patriotism Americans really believe in: help shut down Guantánamo and put an end to torture, rendition and unlawful detention. This July 4th, a diverse coalition of individuals and organizations including Eve Ensler, the Center for Constitutional Rights, Gloria Steinem, the Culture Project, United for Peace and Justice, Code Pink and Not in Our Name are asking people across the United States to join the call to shut down the Guantánamo prison camp and demand an immediate independent investigation into the widespread allegations of abuse taking place there.

Join us as we gather across the country to stage rallies, readings, and other activities in our communities. We will be gathering signatures for a petition to Congress, and following up on Tuesday, July 5th with a massive telephone and online campaign to members of Congress to call for an end to torture and the closing of all offshore, illegal detention centers.

Here’s how you can take part:

Join us in New York City on the Fourth of July to tell the Bush Administration to shut down Guantánamo. For more details click here.

Click here to write a letter to your representatives telling them to shut down Guantánamo and provide fair hearings for the detainees.

Click here to put on a reading of the play, Guantánamo: Honor Bound to Defend Freedom and be part of a nationwide series from theaters to community centers to a living room near you.

Click here to donate to CCR to help us continue the fight in the courtrooms and on the streets to put an end to the Bush administration’s policies of torture, unlawful detention and rendition.

Guantánamo has become a world-wide symbol for the current Administration's arrogant disregard of basic human rights. In the past weeks, world leaders including Presidents Carter and Clinton have joined leading human rights groups in calling for the closing of Guantánamo and other illegal prison facilities around the globe. Countless others have joined the call for an immediate independent investigation and/or special prosecutor to be appointed to investigate the numerous allegations of torture and abuse taking place at Guantánamo and other facilities. Torture is not the American way, and we as concerned members of the community must make a stand to take back our country and the values it was founded upon over 200 years ago.

This Independence Day, American flags declaring: "Torture Is Immoral and Unpatriotic, Shut down Guantánamo" will be distributed across the country and displayed in a show of support for the democratic values outlined in our United States Constitution. Ordinary citizens are mobilizing to read from testimonials of Guantánamo detainees, their families, and their lawyers this July 4th in a show of support for the laws under which this country was founded.

These July 4 & 5 actions are just the beginning of a growing movement - Join Us, Help Shut Down Guantánamo! Help spread word and forward this email to your friends, family and colleagues and bring this action to your community. Over the holiday weekend, do one of the actions listed above, and take a step in the name of democracy and freedom!

Fliers, the petition, and the graphic for the "Torture Is Immoral and Unpatriotic, Shut down Guantánamo" American Flag, are available for download at the Guantánamo Action Center: http://www.ccr-ny.org/gac/

Sincerely,
Ron Daniels
Executive Director, Center for Constitutional Rights