(Washington, DC) -

Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney
Floor Statement
Special Order
May 18, 2006

Mock executions by putting the barrel of a shotgun into the mouth of a prisoner and pulling the trigger; using alligator clips on ears, noses, and genitals; racial attacks and use of racial slurs; burns all over the body; electric shock to the genitals; suffocation with bags, in other words, "torture," is now almost synonymous with US-run prisons and detention centers.  Immediately, the US facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and Abu Ghraib in Iraq come to mind when even the word is said.

How did we get to this point?

Some prison activists immediately pointed out that we must not forget Attica, when we talk about Guantanamo or Abu Ghraib.  And so, I participated in a forum entitled, from Attica to Abu Ghraib.

But now, as the memory of Attica has been invoked, it appears that another US detention facility must be named:  Area 2 in Chicago, run by the Chicago Police Department.  Area 2 will now go down in US annals as a domestic torture center.  Sadly, over 135 African American men have come forward to say that they were tortured, mostly in Chicago's Area 2.

In what could be one of the greatest scandals of modern-day American prison practice and procedure, documentation shows that torture of African American men occurred in Areas 2 and 3 of Chicago jails for over 20 years.  And no one with authority to stop it, did so. Moreover, these actions were covered up for 30 years by those in Chicago in authority.

How many people are in jail today because confessions were tortured out of them?  Incredibly, some prisoners were even on death row after having had confessions "tortured" out of them.  Moreover, the torture victims have psychological issues that have never been clinically resolved.

Thank goodness former Illinois Governor Ryan commuted all the death-row cases, and gave full innocence pardons to four death-row inmates who should never have been imprisoned.

Incredibly, even after Governor Ryan's actions, the City of Chicago is paying more than $5 million to lawyers who represent the accused police officers.

How do we know about this?

Due to the hard work and the thankless hours put in by activists, lawyers, and journalists who refused to let this issue go or be swept under the rug.  And thank goodness we have dedicated journalists for what is referred to as the alternative media who are willing to write these stories and get the message out.

I learned about this story from Amy Goodman's Democracy Now, broadcast on the Pacifica network of stations.

This week or next, the judge will rule whether or not to release the report to the public.  But, in the interim, one thing is clear:  and that is, that Areas 2 and 3 of the Chicago city jail must be added to the annals of US prisoner abuse:  from Attica to Abu Ghraib and beyond, Chicago now owns an unfortunate chapter.