ACLU will defend Guantanamo inmates, and America’s honor

I received an e-mail update from the ACLU that describes their intentions, and why, to defend the 9/11 suspects. Very powerful stuff. I went to check some of the people who are backing the ACLU in their endeavor. One group was the September 11th Advocates, some the wives of those killed in the towers and the Pentagon. That these women, who lost the lives they had before that horrendous occasion, still demand that we give every consideration to those innocent until proven guilty, shows that America is still the greatest country in the world. Here’s their statement:

September 11th Advocates
Patty Casazza, Monica Gabrielle, Mindy Kleinberg, Lorie Van Auken
The September 11th Advocates are women whose spouses died on 9/11. The group was instrumental in the formation of the 9/11 Commissions and later called for a new, independent panel.

As women whose husbands were killed on September 11, 2001, we feel strongly that the perpetrators of that horrific crime should be brought to justice. But first it is imperative to prove that these six detainees are indeed the guilty parties.

Unfortunately, the Administration insists on trying the suspects in the broken military commissions system. Prosecuting these men within a system that is secretive in nature and lacking in due process, and which uses evidence tainted by questionable interrogation methods and possibly even torture, is a dangerous endeavor. All Americans, and indeed the entire international community, must have the opportunity to witness for themselves the body of evidence that ties these individuals to the 9/11 terrorists’ plot. Otherwise the credibility of any verdict will lack legitimacy. Moreover, unless these trials are above reproach, any convictions will bring the wrath of the international community, damaging what is left of America’s standing in the world. Considering that we continue to rely heavily on cooperation from other nations to provide us with intelligence information on would be terrorists, this course of action can only be detrimental to these crucial relationships, thereby jeopardizing our national security.

These trials, when they finally take place, will be scrutinized around the globe. Unless the victims’ families, the American public and the entire world can be convinced that we are trying and convicting the people who are truly responsible for the 9/11 crimes, these trials will be seen as a miserable failure, dimming our prospects of improved international relationships, and making us more vulnerable to terrorist attacks in the future.

On behalf of ourselves, our husbands, and our families, we support the American Civil Liberties Union in its pursuit of justice and insistence on due process. The only outcome worth pursuing is the truth, and the only way get there is by fair trials that uphold the Constitution.

They’ve other luminaries there expressing similar views, but none that have already paid so much. I look forward to the banshees crying about this.