Photos and Report: Eight Global Vigils for the Closure of Guantánamo on February 7, 2024
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As the prison at Guantánamo Bay continues its miserable existence, now in its 23rd year of denying justice to the men held, and betraying every legal principle that is supposed to distinguish the US from dictatorships, I’m grateful to the campaigners across the US, and around the world, who, following the annual protests for Guantánamo’s closure on January 11, the 22nd anniversary of its opening, have resumed the monthly vigils that I initiated a year ago to try to keep a light shining on Guantánamo once a month rather than just once a year.
Via organizations including numerous Amnesty International groups, the UK Guantánamo Network, Witness Against Torture and The World Can’t Wait, vigils took place on Wednesday (February 7) in Washington, D.C., Cobleskill, NY, Detroit and San Francisco, as well as in Mexico City and London, where I joined fellow campaigners outside the Houses of Parliament, and in Brussels and Copenhagen, where campaigners held their vigils on the preceding days.
Photos and Report: The Global Vigils for the Closure of Guantánamo on the 22nd Anniversary of the Prison’s Opening
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8,000 Days of Guantánamo: Vigils Take Place Around the World and 170 Former Prisoners, Lawyers, Politicians and Campaigners Join Photo Campaign
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Wednesday December 6 was a big day for Guantánamo activism, as it marked 8,000 days since the prison opened, and also coincided with the date for the latest global vigils, calling for the closure of Guantánamo, which I initiated in February, and which have been taking place across the US, in London, Mexico City, and elsewhere, every month since.
To mark 8,000 wretched and unforgivably long days of the prison’s existence, I encouraged anti-Guantánamo campaigners around the world to take a photo with the 8,000 days poster, hosted on the Gitmo Clock website, an initiative of the Close Guantánamo campaign, which I established nearly 12 years ago, on the 10th anniversary of the opening of Guantánamo.
The Gitmo Clock has been counting, in real time, how long Guantánamo has been open for nearly six years, since the 16th anniversary of the prison’s opening, on January 11, 2018, when the lamentable Donald Trump was president, and when the prison had been open for 5,845 days.
Photos and Report: The Coordinated Global Vigils for the Closure of Guantánamo on November 1, 2023
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Photos and Report: The Coordinated Global Vigils for the Closure of Guantánamo on October 4, 2023
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UPDATE October 12: Added below are four photos from the UK Guantánamo Network‘s vigil in Parliament Square, in London, which took place a week late, on Wednesday October 11, because of a train strike on October 4.
On Wednesday October 4, the latest monthly coordinated vigils for the closure of Guantánamo took place in eleven locations worldwide — Washington, D.C., New York City, San Francisco, Raleigh, NC, Mexico City, Brussels, Copenhagen, Los Angeles, Detroit, Cobleskill, NY, and Minneapolis, although in the latter location no photographer was available. In London, we delayed our vigil for a week until October 11, because of a train strike, and I’ll be adding photos next week.
The vigils take place on the first Wednesday of every month, and began in February, when I asked friends and colleagues across the US, and in Mexico City, Brussels and Copenhagen, to join the monthly vigils for the prison’s closure that campaigners in London had been undertaking since September last year, drawing on a long tradition of Guantánamo vigils outside the Houses of Parliament.
For the previous vigils, please see my reports from March, April, May, June, July, August and September, all accompanied by numerous photos.
Photos and Report: Global Vigils for the Closure of Guantánamo on September 6, 2023
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On Wednesday September 6, the latest monthly coordinated vigils for the closure of Guantánamo took place in ten locations worldwide — London, Washington, D.C., Mexico City, Detroit, Cobleskill, NY, Brussels and Copenhagen, and with San Francisco and Saratoga Springs, NY joining us for the first time. Aaron Tovo held a solitary vigil in Minneapolis, after some last-minute cancellations, although no one was there to photograph him, and campaigners in New York City have delayed their vigil to September 13.
The vigils take place on the first Wednesday of every month, and began in February, when I asked friends and colleagues across the US, and in Mexico City, Brussels and Copenhagen, to join the monthly vigils for the prison’s closure that campaigners in London had been undertaking since September last year, drawing on a long tradition of Guantánamo vigils outside the Houses of Parliament.
For the development of the vigils, please see my reports from March, April, May, June, July and August, all accompanied by numerous photos.
Photos and Report: Global Vigils for the Closure of Guantánamo on August 2, 2023
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On Wednesday (August 2), the latest monthly coordinated vigils for the closure of Guantánamo took place in seven locations worldwide — London, Washington, D.C., New York City, Mexico City, Detroit, Cobleskill, NY and Los Angeles — with former prisoner Mansoor Adayfi joining us in a one-man vigil in his apartment in Belgrade.
Because it’s holiday season, campaigners in a few locations — Brussels, Copenhagen and Minneapolis — were unable to join us this month, but they’ll be back next month, on Wednesday September 6, when, we’re glad to hear, many of the campaigners involved around the world are working towards making their vigils as prominent as possible.
The vigils take place on the first Wednesday of every month, and began in February, when I asked friends and colleagues across the US, and in Mexico City, Brussels and Copenhagen, to join the monthly vigils for the prison’s closure that campaigners in London had been undertaking since September last year, drawing on a long tradition of Guantánamo vigils outside the Houses of Parliament.
Photos and Report: The Latest Coordinated Global Vigils for the Closure of Guantánamo on July 5, 2023
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Last Wednesday, July 5, coordinated vigils took place around the world calling for the closure of the prison at Guantánamo Bay. My apologies for posting the photos and this report so late, but I took a week’s holiday beginning the day of the vigils, which involved a healthy seven days of digital detox, and I’m only just now back online.
The vigils take place on the first Wednesday of every month, and began in February, when I put a call out to friends and colleagues across the US, and in Mexico City, Brussels and Copenhagen, to join the monthly vigils that campaigners in London had been undertaking since September last year, drawing on a long tradition of vigils for the closure of Guantánamo outside the Houses of Parliament.
For the development of the vigils, please see the photos and reports from March, April, May and June.
Photos and Report: Coordinated Global Vigils for Guantánamo’s Closure in Eleven Locations Worldwide, Including London and Washington, D.C., on June 7, 2023
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Yesterday, June 7, campaigners in eleven locations around the world held coordinated vigils calling for the closure of the prison at Guantánamo Bay, as the prison marked 7,818 days of its existence.
I came up with the idea of coordinated global vigils after campaigners in the UK, with the UK Guantánamo Network (which I’m part of, and which includes members of various Amnesty International groups, Close Guantánamo and other groups) began holding monthly vigils on the first Wednesday of every month outside Parliament last September, and after there had been a flurry of global activity marking the 21st anniversary of the opening of Guantánamo (on January 11), I decided to reach out to activist friends in the US, in Europe, and in Mexico City, to see if they’d be interested in joining in and making the global protests a monthly affair.
I’m glad to note that there was an enthusiastic response. Witness Against Torture and Close Guantánamo campaigners in Washington, D.C. joined us in February, the World Can’t Wait and other New York groups joined us in March, along with campaigners in Mexico City, and Brussels, Los Angeles, Raleigh, NC and Cobleskill, NY joined us in April. Last month we also welcomed Amnesty International campaigners in Copenhagen and Detroit, as well as former prisoner Mansoor Adayfi in Belgrade.
Photos and Report: The Coordinated Global Vigils for the Closure of Guantánamo in London, Washington, D.C., New York, Mexico City, Copenhagen, Brussels and Detroit on May 3, 2023
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On Wednesday (May 3), the latest coordinated global vigils for the closure of the prison at Guantánamo Bay took place in eight cities across the world — London, Washington, D.C. New York, Mexico City, Copenhagen, Brussels, Detroit and Los Angeles — and with former prisoner Mansoor Adayfi joining us in Belgrade.
The idea for coordinated vigils arose from the monthly vigils that the UK Guantánamo Network (a coalition of various Amnesty groups, Close Guantánamo and other groups) started last September, and I was inspired to try coordinating vigils worldwide after reflecting on the various actions marking the 21st anniversary of the opening of Guantánamo in January.
Fortunately, friends in Washington, D.C. agreed to join in in February, with New York and Mexico City joining in March, and Brussels, Los Angeles, Raleigh, NC and Cobleskill, NY joining last month, and this month we were delighted to also welcome campaigners in Copenhagen and Detroit.
Who's still at Guantánamo?
