Join us for events marking 20 years of Guantánamo 

Rupture and Reckoning: 20 years of Guantánamo Anthology and Digital Art Exhibition Launch
Tuesday, January 11, 2022 | 11–1 p.m. ET

On the anniversary of the opening of Guantánamo on January 11th, we would like to use the occasion to stimulate reflection upon the realities of Guantánamo with our partner’s publication and digital art exhibition.

On January 11th, the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) will host an online panel to discuss the impact of Guantánamo and the legal struggle for the detainees and lawyers involved, including those from the Center for Constitutional Rights. ECCHR has been working to fight the U.S. torture program for more than ten years.

Register for this event on the ECCHR website.

Guantánamo, Off the Record: 20 Years in the Fight
Wednesday, January 12, 2022 | 3–4:30 p.m. ET

Join us for Guantánamo, Off the Record, where Center for Constitutional Rights staff will mark the 20th anniversary of the prison’s opening with candid reflections on two decades of work ‒ the victories, the losses, and everything in between. Lawyers and advocates will share stories that didn’t always make the headlines, but that helped define the ongoing struggle to close the forever prison.

What led corporate attorneys to represent detained men? Is there really a souvenir shop at Guantánamo? What does life look like for men after they are released? Send us a question in advance when you register! 

For more information and to RSVP, head to our website.

Double your support and help us meet Katherine Franke’s matching challenge! 

Now you can double the impact of your contribution and honor the extraordinary legacy of Michael Ratner! Our dear friend Katherine Franke has generously offered to match up to $333,000 of all new and increased gifts to the Michael Ratner Campaign for the Next Generation! 

Together, we will continue to deepen our capacity to act as the go-to legal and advocacy partner of social justice movements; spend more time on the ground with our partners; and recruit, mentor, and train young movement lawyers and advocates!  

Check out our 2021 Annual Report and our Winter 2021 Newsletter to see some of what we are accomplishing together, and renew your support with a donation today.

New The Activist Files Podcast Episode! — Cruel by Design - Enduring and Resisting the U.S. Immigration Detention System 

Joseph Thompson, a green card holder from Jamaica, came to the United States in 1985. After an encounter with police in Dalton, Georgia, Joseph was transferred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). So began his nearly three years in ICE captivity. 

Joseph is one of the people featured in “Cruel by Design: Voices of Resistance from Immigration Detention,” a forthcoming report from the Immigrant Defense Project and the Center for Constitutional Rights. In the 45th episode of “The Activist Files,” Joseph speaks with the report’s authors, Samah Sisay, and Mizue Aizeki, about his harrowing experiences in six immigration detention centers in the south.

Listen to the latest episode on our website.