Quarterly Fundraiser: An End of Week Appeal for $700 to Support My Work on Guantánamo and Torture
9.9.11
Please support my work!
Well, my friends, with the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks almost upon us, and every mainstream media outlet bombarding us with far too much information, as though, by now, the anniversary has become some sort of giant annual defining event of America’s identity, those of us who plug away at exposing the dark underbelly of America’s suffering on a regular basis — the damaging response of the Bush administration, with its arrogant and inept “war on terror,” its torture program, its disdain for the Geneva Conventions and its dislike of capable and humane interrogators — are still plugging away, hoping our voices will be heard amidst all the noise that, for the most part, signifies nothing.
I’ve been too busy with “The Complete Guantánamo Files,” my ongoing 70-part, 700,000-word series telling the stories of all the Guantánamo prisoners — for the first time with the inclusion of information drawn from the classified military documents released by WikiLeaks in April, on which I worked as media partner — to fully indulge in the feeding frenzy, and I’ll still be here next week, when the media pack moves on to something new, putting out the 19th or 20th part of the series, and moving on to the next part of the project — a series of ten articles telling the stories of the 111 prisoners released (and the three who died) in 2006.
My aim, as I pore over the thousands of pages of these documents, transcribing and editing them, is to complete this project for another dreadful anniversary that is on the horizon — the 10th anniversary of the opening of Guantánamo, on January 11, 2012, when i hope to have this project finished, and to be able to throughly analyze all the data to demonstrate, more comprehensively than ever before, how Guantánamo has been a humiliating aberration from the law, and a disgrace, with innocent men and boys brutalised with low-level foot soldiers in a prison outside the law in which only a handful — a few dozen at most — of those held were actually involved in terrorism.
Those of you who know my work — and there are many of you, as this site now receives between 250,000 and 300,000 page views a month — know that I do this work on a relative shoestring. A handful of organizations support me, but to be truly independent in the 21st century I’m also trying to establish reader-funded journalism as a viable career for those of us taking advantage of the Internet to get stories out across the world like never before.
Fourteen friends, colleagues, supporters and supportive organisations have ensured that, of the $2500 target I set for this quarter, I am now looking to pull in just $700. My thanks to those of you who have donated, and also to those who read my work, and share it, and comment on it, but who are unable to help out. I fully understand, and my relationship with you is not, I hope, one based on money, but if you are able to donate at the end of this fundraising week, it will help me to keep shining a light on the darkness and crimes that are still so easily obscured.
If you can help, please click on the “Donate” button above to make a payment via PayPal. All contributions are welcome, whether it’s $25, $100 or $500. Readers can pay via PayPal from anywhere in the world, but if you’re in the UK and want to help without using PayPal, you can send me a cheque (address here — scroll down to the bottom of the page), and if you’re not a PayPal user and want to send a check from the US (or from anywhere else in the world, for that matter), please feel free to do so, but bear in mind that I have to pay a $10/£6.50 processing fee on every transaction. Securely packaged cash is also an option!
So that’s it, my last appeal until December. Thank you again for all your support.
Andy Worthington
London
September 9, 2011
Andy Worthington is the author of The Guantánamo Files: The Stories of the 774 Detainees in America’s Illegal Prison (published by Pluto Press, distributed by Macmillan in the US, and available from Amazon — click on the following for the US and the UK) and of two other books: Stonehenge: Celebration and Subversion and The Battle of the Beanfield. To receive new articles in your inbox, please subscribe to my RSS feed (and I can also be found on Facebook, Twitter, Digg and YouTube). Also see my definitive Guantánamo prisoner list, updated in June 2011, details about the new documentary film, “Outside the Law: Stories from Guantánamo” (co-directed by Polly Nash and Andy Worthington, on tour in the UK throughout 2011, and available on DVD here — or here for the US), my definitive Guantánamo habeas list and the chronological list of all my articles.
Who's still at Guantánamo?
17 Responses
Andy Worthington says...
On Facebook, George Kenneth Berger wrote:
Dugg.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 8:25 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Thanks, George. I’ve just been on Russia Today, discussing the 9/11 anniversary and what it means. It was my first Skype interview so I’ll be interested to see how it came out, but it’s clearly very convenient to be interviewed remotely in your own home. Looking forward to more …
...on September 9th, 2011 at 8:26 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Ann Alexander wrote:
Ok so no more Million Pound Drop – changing over to Russia Today.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:09 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Haha, very good, Ann. Not sure what time it’s on — or what time it’s repeated, I should say. It was 4 pm in a bright shiny studio in Washington D.C., 9 pm on a dark night here in London …
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:09 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Ann Alexander wrote:
For sure I’ll catch it Andy one way or another. I like Russia Today. It is an education to me.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:11 pm
Andy Worthington says...
It was OK, I hope, Ann. Slightly weird being on Skype, but very easy to get used to, I’m sure.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:12 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Ann Alexander wrote:
As you say, Andy what better than being interviewed in the comfort of your own home. And Russia Today reaches so many people. Possibly, your thoughts will be the only sane comments we will hear all weekend. I like what Anis Altakriti put up – “Dear America; your 9/11 is our 24/7. Sincerely, Palestine”.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:47 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Ann Alexander wrote:
What a coincidence, Andy. Anis is actually on Russia Today as I write.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:47 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Yes, i just saw him, on that boat in the Thames that RT uses. It would be nice, wouldn’t it, if this anniversary really did bring an end to the perceived exceptionalism of 9/11 and Americans’ suffering, so we can move on to really bringing the Bush/Cheney era to an end.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:48 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Ann Alexander wrote:
And Kirsty Wark is interviewing Rumsfeld on Newsnight. Hopefully she will give him a Glasgow kiss. haha
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:53 pm
Andy Worthington says...
I saw that was on. I couldn’t face it — Kirsty in black, for 9/11, undoubtedly being charming with Rumsfeld rather than following your suggestion — or serving him with a torture indictment.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 9:53 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Ann Alexander wrote:
How right you were, Andy. She allowed Rumsfeld to appear like a big cuddly teddy bear.
...on September 9th, 2011 at 11:38 pm
Andy Worthington says...
UGH! That’s disgraceful. You should complain, Ann. He’s an unindicted war criminal. What’s wrong with these establishment journalists?
...on September 9th, 2011 at 11:38 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Virginia Simson wrote:
Where to start, Andy! They are like this over here about ALEC members (American Legislative Exchange Council) which is the next decades’ arrangement for more neofeudalism. The press have a warped status concept about themselves- would rather eat lunch w/someone pro-pollution, pro-Koch brothers, than listen to someone who knows and fights back. The press here is bought off and COLLUDING, same as the friggin lawyers who sit and watch the destruction of the First Amendment. I know your question is rhetorical but it’s really one to examine! This is why I admire you so much, you just keep on doin’ the right thing. This new #solidarity movement that is global may just prove to be the protocol we need to get better citizen journalism instead of PR releases from corporations. These networks and newspapers won’t publish against corps like Aliant, Boeing, et al becuz of the ad revenues generated. Blogging doesn’t pay for those of us who care, otherwise we could support each other!
...on September 11th, 2011 at 2:50 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Thanks, Virginia. What an excellent analysis of the problems with mainstream US journalism! Thanks also for the supportive words. I recently went to an event at which the British establishment was present, and it made me realize how much of an outsider I am, but how I wouldn’t have it any other way. Otherwise it’s hard to remain objective when the criminals that journalists are supposed to be scrutinizing (in politics and business), or other well-meaning but deluded people of influence (also in politics) become part of your social circle.
...on September 11th, 2011 at 3:00 pm
Andy Worthington says...
Virginia Simson wrote:
I don’t think George Orwell was too popular – and Dickens certainly had his shame buttons pushed regularly. I wouldn’t pay 5 cents to take a journalism class in the US. My role is to be a principled researcher, NOT a journalist, and my payoff is that I know Google cached many fine articles that would have been “lost” if I had not posted them. Not much of a legacy, but good enough for me!!
Sorry you had to hang out with The Worthmores (as I call them) at all. they just use up energy and values. At worst, they just rip you off … I was there six looong years in Camden Town trying to get child abuse on the page via newsletters and a treatment centre my husband and I set up. What a show that was .. fighting torture of young children and traumatization- and The Worthmores say “Keep a stiff upper lip” Yeah, right ! Nearly EVERY agony aunt in the UK was an abuse victim. They were afraid to “air dirty laundry”. This clique of upper class twits who supported torture all stick together through thin and thin.
...on September 11th, 2011 at 3:56 pm
Andy Worthington says...
And then an excellent analysis of Britain’s abusive class system, Virginia. Another reason that I’m happy not to be spending time with these people …
...on September 11th, 2011 at 3:57 pm