Portland: Close Guantanamo now!

Veterans for Peace and Amnesty International held a vigil on Nov. 6 in Portland, Oregon, with the theme: “Now is the time to finally close Guantanamo!” The vigil, co-sponsored by 16 organizations, was part of many actions taking place across the country to protest the ongoing abuse of human rights at the U.S. military base in Guantanamo. The U.S. has refused to return Guantanamo, where it has held prisoners from the wars against Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere for decades, to Cuba.

Dan Shae, president of Portland Veterans for Peace, shown above, said: “We need to put maximum pressure on the Biden Administration in the next two months he has left to right his wrongs on Cuba and to close the Guantanamo Bay Industrial Prison Complex, among others.”

For some time, the 30 men still detained at Guantanamo have been approved for release by a high-level U.S. government review process. However, after the October 7 Hamas uprising, the President Joe Biden administration refused to release them. Of the 30 prisoners, 16 have been waiting two to four years to be released and three for nearly 15 years. 

There is a protective order in place that prevents attorneys for the prisoners from talking about the injustices taking place. The gag order is a further indictment of the U.S. government for how it operates at Guantanamo. 

From Palestine to Guantanamo, stop the U.S. War Machine!

 – Report and photo by Lyn Neeley