June 25: Discussion of "Guantanamo Diary" at 8th Day

Guantanamo Diary
by Mohamedou Ould Slahi

Join us for a discussion of

Guantanamo Diary

Thursday, June 25, Noon to 1:30 PM

8th Day Center for Justice

205 W. Monroe, Suite 500, Chicago

With the publication of this book, we are able to read for the first time a diary written by a man who is still held in Guantanamo. It has been called an “unprecedented international publishing event,” only possible after years of legal battles to gain its release from U.S. government censors. Beyond the record of unspeakable abuse and torment, it is also a very personal story of the author’s humanity, grace and even humor.

H. Candace Gorman will bring her experiences fighting for Guantanamo detainees into our discussion. She is the principal in the law office of H. Candace Gorman. The firm concentrates in civil rights and human rights. Since 2005, Candace has represented three Guantanamo detainees, one still remains at the Guantanamo prison. She also maintains a blog about Guantanamo litigation at http://gtmoblog.blogspot.com/

H. Candace Gorman

This event is part of the Lunch & Learn monthly series hosted by 8th Day Center for Justice and it is being held as part of honoring survivors of torture. June 26 is the International Day in Support of Survivors of Torture, established by the United Nations in 1998. June 26 is the date the U.N. Charter was signed in 1945. We will let you know of other events planned in conjunction with this day.

Join us, whether you’ve had a chance to read the book in its entirety or not. If you have read the book, please consider sharing a passage with us that is particularly meaningful to you. We will also have a few copies available for purchase.


“Anyone who reads Guantanamo Diary - and every American with a shred of conscience should do so, now - will be ashamed and appalled. Mohamedou Ould Slahi’s demand for simple justice should be our call to action.” Glenn Greenwald, Author of No Place to Hide: Edward Snowden, The NSA, and the U.S. Surveillance State

“A vision of hell, beyond Orwell, beyond Kafka: perpetual torture prescribed by the mad doctors of Washington.” John Le Carré , Author of A Delicate Truth


Related posts


Members of the Chicago Coalition to Shut Down Guantanamo members share excerpts from Guantánamo Diary by Mohamedou Ould Slahi during the Justice Walk on Good Friday 2015 in Chicago.

(See Good Friday 2015: How can we help to shine the light? )

People around the country are reading Guantánamo Diary by Mohamedou Ould Slahi, a book that shines a light on the U.S. conspiracy to detain and torture Muslim men, and the triumph of the human spirit over those acts. The Chicago Coalition to Shut Down Guantanamo and others are joining the effort to study this book and share its contents widely.

(See Chicago Digs Into ‘Guantánamo Diary’ by Mohamedou Ould Slahi )











Members of the Northwestern University community participated in May 2 in a marathon reading of Mohamedou Ould Slahi’s Guantánamo Diary.

(See At Northwestern on May 2, 2015: Public Reading of "Guantánamo Diary" )

Chicago Digs Into ‘Guantánamo Diary’ by Mohamedou Ould Slahi

Mohamedou Ould Slahi

People around the country are reading Guantánamo Diary by Mohamedou Ould Slahi, a book that shines a light on the U.S. conspiracy to detain and torture Muslim men, and the triumph of the human spirit over those acts.

The Chicago Coalition to Shut Down Guantanamo and others are joining the effort to study this book and share its contents widely.

Slahi is a Mauritanian man detained at Guantánamo Bay Detention Center who managed to write a diary in English and go through the necessary procedures to enable the (highly redacted) manuscript to reach the outside world. Larry Siems, an editor who has never been able to meet Slahi, prepared the book for publication.

We'll be adding information here about upcoming events in Chicago related to Guantánamo Diary, as well as commentary from CCSDG participants.

In the meantime, please check out some of the many reviews and commentaries emerging in the mainstream press about Guantánamo Diary.

Guantánamo Diary
by Mohamedou Ould Slahi

Democracy Now, "Inside the U.S. Torture Chambers: Prisoner’s Guantánamo Diary Details 12 Years of Abuse, Terror" (January 22, 2015)

C-SPAN, "Book Discussion on Guantánamo Diary: Nancy Hollander and Hina Shamsi talked about Mohamedou Slahi and his book, Guantánamo Diary." (January 23, 2015)

The New York Times, "From Inside Prison, a Terrorism Suspect Shares His Diary (‘Guantánamo Diary’ by Mohamedou Ould Slahi)" by Scott Shane (January 25, 2015)

CNN Money, "Guantanamo detainee's diary is a New York Times best seller" (January 29, 2015)