Submitted by Dan Johnson, Group 48 Legislative Coordinator
This has already been a very exciting year for policy and human rights, and another big step has just been taken. There has been a lot of talk about accountability and transparency into the violations that occurred during the last 8 years. Many good points have been made about finding out how it got so bad so quickly, and what needs to be done to prevent it from happening again.
During the last week of February, Senator Leahy, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, scheduled a committee hearing on for the 4th of March titled “Getting to the Truth Through a Nonpartisan Commission of Inquiry”. The intent is an ambitious investigation to really learn what went wrong. One of the most striking parts of the announcement of the hearing was the following section:
“While many are focused on whether crimes were committed, it is just as important to learn if significant mistakes were made, regardless of whether they can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt to a unanimous jury to be criminal conduct. We compound the serious mistakes already made if we limit our inquiry to criminal investigations and trials. Moreover, it is easier for prosecutors to net those far down the ladder than those at the top who set the tone and the policies. We do not yet know the full extent of our government’s actions in these areas, and we must be sure that an independent review goes beyond the question of whether crimes were committed, to the equally important assessment of whether mistakes were made so we may endeavor not to repeat them.”
Personally, I am very excited and even surprised that action of this degree has happened so quickly. It is important that we make sure our voices are still heard, and that our Senators know that we expect them to speak out. We expect them to act to support the creation of this commission and speak out about the need for accountability for the abuses of detainees in custody of the USA.
AIUSA has set up a special page on their website that can help you make the call to the DC Senate offices, and provides a summary of talking points to make your call nice and easy. Go to this page to get the instructions for calling the Oregon Senators.
If you would prefer to call their local offices, that would be great as well. It’s important that they know that their constituents are thinking about these issues.
Senator Wyden (Portland): (503) 326-7525
Senator Merkley (Portland): (503) 326-3386
And finally, there is an online action that sends email to the Senators. It is one more channel to get our voices heard.
AIUSA Group 48 
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