Jennifer Gonnerman on life in New York's "Li'l Gitmo" and the politics of indefinite detention

"Something happened here I thought would never happen," Arrington says. "You expect it in the former Soviet Union, or Saudi Arabia maybe. But New York City? It's like they took the Bill of Rights and threw it in the trash can. To be arrested for standing on a sidewalk for disorderly conduct? It's beyond ridiculous. It violates people's rights. I'd have never believed it if you told me this would happen in the middle of New York City."

...In this crowd, it was easy to spot those who had been in jail. They were the ones whose T-shirts had filthy backs. The floor at Pier 57 had been covered with soot and grease droppings from the buses that used to park there. Some protesters spent the entire night at Pier 57. Anyone who tried to sleep was left with a dirty back. Sebastian Licht from Connecticut had removed his sandals and knelt on the ground. Now he had bandages on both feet. On the tops of them, he said, he'd gotten chemical burns. (Later in the week, after numerous complaints, city officials did put down carpets at Pier 57.)

One released detainee offers a personal account of over 40 hours in Pier 57, the "Guantanamo on the Hudson" and the Tombs of central booking.



Another arrestee offers a videotaped testimony here



I, meanwhile, have been trying to post this entry for over 24 hours, but blogger seems to have been otherwise inclined, which makes me miss my old dependable html geocities site.