As part of the American Civil Liberties Union's (ACLU) "Day of Action to Restore Law and Justice" on June 26th in Washington DC, the Michigan ACLU is organizing protests targeting Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow for her support of the Military Commissions Act. In Grand Rapids, the protest will take place from 12:00pm to 1:00pm at the Calder Plaza.
Stabenow was one of only twelve Democrats to support the Military Commission Act when it was passed in 2006. The Military Commissions Act gives the president unprecedented authority to determine who is an "enemy" of the United States and who can be imprisoned indefinitely. The Act eliminates due process by removing the right of habeas corpus for people designated as "unlawful enemy combatants" by the president, permits the use of evidence in court that was obtained through coercion including physical force, gives retroactive immunity to government officials who authorized or ordered illegal acts of torture in the past, and allows the president to determine what constitutes torture rather than relying on the international standards outlined in the Geneva Conventions. According to the ACLU, Senator Stabenow has said that she will support legislation designed to "fix" the Military Commissions Act. However, the ACLU believes that it is still important for Stabenow to "continue to hear from her constituents that she must do everything she can to end torture and restore due process."
Specifically, the ACLU will be calling for the restoration of the right of habeas corpus. Habeas corpus is a fundamental right in the United States' Constitution, outlawing indefinite and unlawful imprisonment. Its origins date back to England's Magna Carta and it has been upheld through recent Supreme Court decisions protecting Guantanamo detainees. However, the Military Commissions Act, passed in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling that the military commission system established by President Bush to try detainees at Guantanamo Bay was unfair and illegal, removed this right. As part of the ACLU's ongoing efforts to fix the Military Commissions Act and to restore habeas corpus, it has supported the Habeas Corpus Restoration Act in the Senate. Last week that bill was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee and it will possibly be voted on the week of June 26th.
Additional protests are planned at Stabenow's Detroit, Farmington Hills, East Lansing, and Traverse City offices. A call-in to her Marquette office is also planned.
