Two members of Witness Against Torture went with the Justice for Muslims Collective (Maha Hilal providing leadership in both) to provide education about institutionalized Islamophobia and racism at the annual Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) on Passover/Easter weekend in March. We tabled beside the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT). To personalize the fact of Muslim men being indefinitely detained at Guantanamo, original paintings by Khalid Qassim were arranged on the table along with greeting cards. Conference participants stopped to hear his story and see his artwork; many wrote him messages of encouragement, even in Arabic. We also provided a continuous showing of Luke Nephew reading There Is a Man Under That Hood while one of us stood in an orange jump suit and hood beside the video. Young people were curious — and some amused or alarmed -- by the exhibit, enabling us to elaborate about the injustice at Guantanamo and the underlying Islamophobia. One of our signs challenged racism, saying “Black Lives Matter — Not Just When It’s Convenient.” After we tabled, the four of us stood to vigil as attendees were leaving the main hall, even being joined by a conference-goer.
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