On Tuesday night, several on-campus organizations joined together to produce a three-member panel discussion on the topics of post-9/11 civil liberties and the "war on terror."
The discussion was held in the Mudd Hall Auditorium and each panel-member was given a chance to address the audience.
First to speak was David Cole, a Georgetown law professor and author of the award-winning book "Enemy Aliens."
"One thing said about September 11th is that it changed everything," Cole stated. "I think it is more accurate to say it changed everything for some."
And from there, Cole began what would be the heart of his discussion. He quickly expressed his disapproval of the Bush administration's tactics in the "war against terrorism."
Cole's major criticism of the administration focused on the way its officials avoided the tough question of which civil liberties U.S. citizens should exchange for more security following the 9/11 attacks.
According to Cole, the administration avoided the question by taking away the civil liberties of Arab and Muslim foreign nationals.
Cole referred to these foreign nationals as a "vulnerable, voiceless minority" that is being taken advantage of, in particular through Attorney General John Ashcroft's preventive detention campaign.
Cole went on to say that the campaign was designed to target foreign nationals with potential connections to terrorism, and then detain and charge them with immigration violations.
However, as Cole points out, seven weeks into the campaign, over 1,100 foreign nationals had been held in detention, but not one had been charged with terrorism.
"There were secret arrests in the United States without charges," said Cole. "They were tried in secret."
While these foreign nationals were held without charges and without rights, Cole refers to them as "the lucky ones."
Cole then referenced the large number of foreign nationals that have been held at Guantanamo Bay for over two years as "prisoners of war" with no charges brought against them.
"Because they are foreign nationals, we have stood silent," Cole said , adding that had such injustices been done to U.S. citizens, the public would not have accepted them.
Cole voiced disapproval of the Patriot Act and gave three reasons to stop targeting foreign nationals.
"[First] it is wrong to deny basic human rights to anyone...[Second], it undermines the legitimacy of a legitimate effort by putting a burden on others that we wouldn't burden ourselves...[And lastly], these measures will come back to haunt us," Cole said. "What we do to foreign nationals is a precursor of what will be done to us."
Next at the podium was Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, who is an attorney as well as a civil rights and civil liberties activist from the Partnership for Civil Justice.
Hilliard's talk centered on the context of civil rights and civil liberties violations, or as she put it, "what is happening now and why is it happening."
Hilliard condemned the Bush administration as having used the events of 9-11 "as a very effective mechanism to pursue a very right wing agenda."
Hilliard claims the administration used the terrorist attacks on the U.S. as an excuse to "wage endless war," adding that the lies at the war's foundation are now unraveling.
"This administration has dreams of empire and global conquest," said Hilliard, referring in particular to the U.S. occupation of Iraq. "It's called a war on terrorism, but it is a war of conquest.
Hilliard continued with her speech by relating the administration's domestic policies to its foreign agenda, stating that while the government claims that there is a lack of available funding for needs within the U.S., like education and healthcare, it simultaneously allocates "endless money" for war.
Ultimately all power remains in the hands of the people," Hilliard said in closing. "Things will get better when people [speak up]."
The last panelist to speak was Jumana Musa, the Advocacy Director of Domestic Human Rights and International Justice for Amnesty International.
Musa's talk focused on the international effects of the United States' "war on terror." Musa began by explaining thatbecause there is no single world body that establishes international law, such law is set by the example of other countries.
Since the U.S. is the global superpower, Musa said, it plays a major role by setting a precedent that other countries follow.
Musa noted that since the U.S. passed its anti-terrorism laws, several countries have followed suit by passing very similar laws.
In particular, Musa singled out Zimbabwe, which has no history of terrorism, yet in light of the U.S. anti-terrorism laws, arrested six journalists and charged them with terrorist activities.
Musa also compared the U.S. government's its anti-terrorism tactics to those of Egypt, a country known to have a poor human rights situation.
Musa says that once the U.S. disclosed their anti-terrorism laws, Egyptian authorities stepped forward and claimed that the U.S.'s new policies proved that Egyptian anti-terrorism policies, which severely limit civil and human rights, were right all along.
To conclude, Musa stated that by setting an unjust policy precedent that would be followed by many nations, the U.S. was harming itself. Musa also added that many U.S. citizens worldwide are affected by the policies of other nations, and ended her talk by encouraging the audience to take part in preserving the rule of law and human rights.
The three-member panel then answered questions from the audience to conclude the discussion.
