Wes and I take the vigil to Las Vegas. This shot was taken not long before someone chucked a Gatorade bottle at me.

A Buddhist came up to talk about the vigil and let us know we had his support.

While we think that the majority of Guantánamo detainees are not “our enemies”, we believe those who genuinely are should also not be tortured. Hence the quote from Jesus.

New signs were quickly whipped up for this week’s vigil since the ones from Des Moines wouldn’t fit in our bags. Unfortunately, the only poster board we could find that was made in the USA was pretty flimsy. Thankfully it wasn’t very windy, but the temperature was over 100 degrees. Not a fun day to wear the hood.

Drivers often paused for awhile to stare at us, even when the light turned green.

No homophobic remarks this week? Wow. I guess Des Moines citizens are more afraid of homosexuals than Las Vegans.

Photos from our May 30th vigil against torture.

Veteran Bob Meddaugh joined us for a Pre-Memorial Day vigil against torture at Valley West Mall.

Dixie joined us for the afternoon, and strangely, there were no cries of “faggot” today from passersby. Hm.

The group that assembled for our Pre-Memorial Day vigil against torture received overwhelmingly positive remarks this week. As a side note, the black hood Kirk is wearing in this photo was incredibly unpleasant to have on in the 90 degree heat.

“Where, oh where is liberty, setting captives free? Today is a day to remember victims of senseless national violence. We have no money for teachers in Iowa, but we have money to create enemies abroad. We have no money for the arts in Iowa, but we have money to create enemies abroad.”

“Today we remember Omar Khadr, who was only a teenager when he was first taken to Guantánamo and threatened with rape. We remember Dilawar, an innocent peanut farmer who was tortured to death at Bagram Air Base. His three-year-old daughter will never see the face of her father again.” Of note, the words, “Phil Berrigan Memorial Bullhorn” can be read on the side of the megaphone, which was loaned to us by the Des Moines Catholic Worker.

The cop who arrived this week said he’d heard that we were running in and out of traffic, an odd claim that other officers have voiced before. After we told him this was not the case, he told us he liked the corporate America flag, then left, and we carried on.

Mall security arrived to monitor us again, and we discussed what sort of things they might be writing in their log book. “Monitored terrorist group for two hours” perhaps?

Here’s to hoping next week’s weather is 20 degrees cooler.

Kirk and I took turns on the megaphone, telling short stories about men imprisoned in Guantánamo and Bagram. Video still by Bob Meddaugh.

Just two photos from the fourteenth week of our vigil against torture in West Des Moines.

Mall security stares down the most horrifying threat they have ever faced – some weird guy in a jumpsuit.

Opposing drivers seem to be out of original ammo to fire at us, instead satisfying themselves with gay and racial epithets. At one point a driver who spotted the sign that said “No More Torture” yelled at us that we were “Un-American.” It’s an odd point to make. On the other hand, one driver stopped to bring us fruit to eat and offer encouragement.

After a couple of weeks of having my computer in the shop, I’m back to blogging. Picking up where I left off with playing catch-up on the vigil against torture, here are some more photos.

A man approached us and began asking why Kirk was wearing a mask. Kirk responded that he was wearing it for reasons of anonymity and solidarity with others. The man told him that it was illegal to wear a mask in public, and that he was going to call the police. Lo and behold, a new friend arrived.

A man approached us and began asking why Kirk was wearing a mask. Kirk responded that he was wearing it for reasons of anonymity and solidarity with others. The man told him that it was illegal to wear a mask in public, and that he was going to call the police. Lo and behold, a new friend arrived.

Officer Baconworthy: “Put down the megaphone.”
James: “It’s not illegal to use a megaphone.”
Officer Baconworthy: “Yes it is; you need a permit to use it.”
James: “We tried applying for a permit but West Des Moines city hall told us it was not required.” (True story, as the megaphone is a 10 watt device, and devices that require a permit are 50+ watt amplifiers.)
Officer Baconworthy: “You can either put down the megaphone, or you can go to jail.”
We, of course, did not go to jail, but continued using the megaphone. This prompted two more cops to show up, who again failed to take us to jail.

Farewell, broom handle. Wesley introduces the newer, more respectable flagpole. We’re sure not to be mocked now!

My favorite reactions to the detainee-on-a-cross image:

“You’re not God!”
“Blasphemy!”
And, of course:
“Go fuck yourself!”

This week brought probably the most hostile responses from passersby we have ever heard. It was a conglomeration of nearly every horrible, racist phrase we’ve had thrown at us:

“Fuck those sand niggers!”
“Go America! Torture the shit out of them!”
“Those towel-heads don’t have any rights!”

Golden Goblet of Mildness:
“Go home, you…nerds!”

Kirk holds a new sign that James wrote up.

After being warned that we would be sent to jail if we continued to use the megaphone, we returned to Valley West Mall a couple hours later and continued to use it. (It is, after all, entirely legal.) Wesley gave a speech entitled, “I Am America” while donning an Air Force uniform.

Someone who claimed to be a soldier stopped by to hassle Wes about his military uniform and me about laying on an enormous cross. This led to a baffling conversation.

Dude: “You know torture is in the Bible, right?”
Me: “…..yes. Jesus himself was tortured.”
Dude: “Well, what about capital punishment?”
James: “Capital punishment is absolutely wrong.”
Dude: “But they did it in the Bible!”

Indeed, sir. Rape and incest are also in the Bible. Does context not matter?

Dude: “Don’t even try to talk to me about religious [sic]. I guarantee you, I know way more about it than you.”

Alright, sir. We’ll trust you on that one.

I took up the megaphone for awhile and was thrown some real gems in response. This was literally yelled at us: “If you’re not white, leave the country”

I gave a brief speech about Dilawar, a 22-year-old Afghanistan peanut farmer who was tortured to death in five days by the US military while held captive at Bagram, and Ahmed Errachidi, a London chef taken away from his wife and two young boys to be tortured in Guantánamo for five years before being released without charge.

Sergeant Grufflesworth arrived, clearly upset that after repeatedly warning us not to use the megaphone, we were continuing to use it. He told us we’d be heading to jail, called in backup, and took down our information. His backup officer simply stood behind him, crossing his arms to look intimidating. After this, I informed him of what the West Des Moines sound ordinance says, which is that devices of 50 watts or less do not require a permit. We even double-checked this by applying for a permit at the West Des Moines City Hall a few weeks prior. The megaphone is a 10 watt device and therefore a permit cannot be obtained for it. He then switched to bullying us about other things, as he knew he had no grounds to arrest us.

The sergeant tried to make us agree to not use the megaphone again, but we refused, as it is not against the law. As you can see, he used very persuasive jaw movements.

So online, this guy is a totally hot night elf in World of Warcraft. We get to know each other, things are going pretty awesomely…and then we decide to meet up in person to do some shopping at the ol’ VW Mall.

Disappointing.

Recently I got the opportunity to design a web site for Bee Season author, Myla Goldberg. Now she’s heading on tour to promote her new book, The False Friend! Head over to MylaGoldberg.com to check out the redesign and tour dates!

Continuing with the history of Thomas J. Buxtehude, here is a podcast from his show, The Burning Bush in which he interviews an anti-torture activist named Gregory Cockburn. Below is the graphic Buxtehude provided on his own web site for the interview, taken from the seventh week of our vigil against torture.

Continuing the series of catch-up posts regarding our weekly vigil against torture, here is a brief recap of the twelfth week, with photos.

The Americans follow the Romans before them.

Both this week and last, a person exited his vehicle to come voice his concerns to us about creating this image on the roadside. Last week, someone pointed to me and asked, “What’s that?” I explained to him that it was a visual designed to tie Christ’s suffering at the hands of the Romans to the suffering of Guantánamo detainees at the hands of U.S. troops. “I just really disagree with you being on the cross like that. Only Jesus is supposed to be on the cross,” he said. I then reminded him that thousands of people were crucified aside from Jesus, even though we were shooting for a connection to Jesus with this visual.

This week, after explaining the connection between the Romans and Americans, someone responded, “That’s pretty extreme.” I told him I thought it was pretty extreme of people to do nothing about people being tortured through their own tax dollars. He went on to tell us that our vigil had inspired him to hand a homeless person a tract and some cash. I’m not sure what to think about that. I’m glad that people are stopping to have conversations, though.

Mall security brought out double their usual number of shudder-inducing white vans to monitor their beloved property line. Photograph by Wesley Norman.

This man thought our souls might be in need of saving.

At this point the comments of passersby are fairly predictable. This week it was variations of “faggot”, “get a job”, “traitors”, and “terrorists”. An interesting addition was somebody threatening Kirk with, “I’m going to come over there and beat your ass!” Unfortunately, he never showed up. The best this week was some lady who drove by and yelled, “What the fuck are you guys doing?” A close second was, “I love war!”

A great video via Amnesty International:

On the eleventh week of our vigil, we added the image of a detainee on a cross. The goal in doing so, for me, is multilayered: (1) Connect taxpayers to what they are funding (torture that is deliberately hidden overseas), (2) publicly remember the suffering of detainees, (3) visually highlight the presence of Christ in “the least of these” (Matthew 25:45), and (4) connect the torture of Christ at the hands of the Romans to the torture of detainees like Dilawar and Ahmed Errachidi at the hands of US troops.

This is an image which is clearly controversial, and we did not take it lightly. I personally mulled over the implications of placing a detainee on a cross in public for about a month before taking part. Initially, a couple of questions came to mind: first, is this sacrilegious? After thinking it through, I believe the answer is no, although others have suggested to me that it is. Usually the reason has been that the cross is a sacred symbol of Christianity. However, Christ was only one of thousands of men who were crucified at the hands of various government institutions. The method of his death is not what is sacred. However, some opponents have continued, we are intending to emphasize a connection directly to Jesus and not just any victim of crucifixion – so it’s still sacrilege to put someone else on the cross. But this connection is one that is not an original idea of ours, as Christ already made it Himself. I’ve plucked this from Matthew 25:31-46.

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

This, of course, is the same set of verses that anti-starvation organizations like Compassion International use in their advertisements – a connection which is generally accepted. I believe that Christ is present in the suffering of torture victims just as he is in the starvation of little children.

Another question that I pondered was, “Is this appropriate to do in public?” One of the first things that came to mind was how terrifying the image could be to some people, especially kids. I realized, however, that this is actually a more appropriate reaction to torture than the one that people typically have: continuing about their daily lives as if nothing is wrong. When this image breaks the pseudo-peace of the everyday, it forces people to confront reality: people have been and likely continue to be tortured by the US, and it is funded by the money and indifference of tax payers. At that point, people must make a decision to hurl profanities at us, ignore us, or do something to contribute in voicing dissatisfaction with how our tax money is used and how people are abused.

The last main question that came to mind was, “Will this win people to my side of the debate?” The answer is “probably not.” After all, as Buxtehude says, “you catch more flies with honey.” But we’ve already tried this the proper, civilized way – Kirk Brown and I wrote a presentation about two innocent torture victims and visited over a hundred churches to try to get them to let us share it. We tried to be polite, but our efforts were rejected based upon the subject matter alone at all but one church (who allowed me to present half of it) – none of the others even took us up on the offer to read it over. And lest you say that holding up signs and yelling isn’t very loving, it’s good to be reminded that some of our traditional biblical heroes did not always take the “nice and soft” mode of communication. Jesus called the Pharisees a “brood of vipers”, flipped over the moneychangers’ tables, and Stephen gave an angry speech to the authorities just before being killed. It is not always appropriate to slather people in a coat of sugary words, and in our circumstance, that now seems particularly inappropriate. So we give you this instead: a collection of photos from our eleventh weekly vigil against torture, accompanied by quotes from a book by Bill Cavanaugh which we studied as a group before beginning our vigils.

“Suddenly the silence and invisibility under which the torture apparatus operates are shattered, interrupting its power. In an astonishing ritual transformation, clandestine torture centers are revealed to the passersby for what they are, as if a veil covering the building were abruptly taken away. The complicity of other sectors of the government and society is laid bare for all to see. The entire torture system suddenly appears on a city street.” – William Cavanaugh, Torture and Eucharist.

“Torture plays on the incommunicability of pain to isolate the victim. Here, however, this isolation is overcome by the sharing of pain.” – William Cavanaugh, Torture and Eucharist

“In the man humiliated and defeated by torture we discover the Servant of Yahweh, Jesus who is crucified today, the prophet who denounces the personal and social sin of his time and ours, the Son of God dead and resurrected, present in every action which transforms History.” – William Cavanaugh, Torture and Eucharist

Kirk holds a sign that reads, “USA: Torturing Our Way to World Peace.”

“And if to some extent we share the sufferings of the tortured, He who was tortured by Roman justice and nailed on the Cross accompanies us and we for our part accompany Him, because He identifies Himself with the tortured.” – A member of the Sebastián Acevedo Movement Against Torture in Chile.

To all those who languish alone in cells in Guantánamo: we have not forgotten you. We will not forget you. Every week we publicly remember your suffering.

A new sign from Rob.

Incredibly, a few people got out of their cars, hurled dirt clods at us and called us terrorists. Other moronic comments:

“No one’s being tortured by Americans.”
“They died for your freedom, you fucking faggots!”

Golden Goblet of Venom Award:
“You’ve never done a fucking pushup in your life, faggot!”

Longtime friends Nick and Paul, better known as the Books, are heading to Iowa on Halloween. I whipped up this 4-color poster for the show, printed by the folks over at 8/7 central. It features fonts that were hand-made by the Books, as well as the iconic fly which functions as the back button on the web site I built for them five years ago. Maybe I’ll see some of you at the show?