Dear Friends, January 11, 2026 will mark the 24th anniversary of the opening of the post-9/11 U.S. detention facility at Guantánamo Bay — a prison that is synonymous with torture, indefinite detention, and the erosion of fundamental human rights. 15 men remain in post-9/11 detention in the facility, 6 of whom have never been charged with a crime. Early this year, the Trump Administration said it wanted to be able to hold 30,000 immigrants at Guantánamo. About 700 immigrants have been sent to Guantanamo in 2025. Some have been held in the military detention facilities portion of the base, and some in the adjacent Migrant Operations Center. This month, 22 Cuban immigrants were sent from Louisiana to Guantánamo, with some going to the military detention facilities where the record of U.S. torture and abuse is well known. Lee Gelernt, a lawyer with the ACLU, told long-time Guantánamo NYT reporter Carol Rosenberg that “Guantánamo is largely operating as a black box and that’s why we’ve asked the court to order the government to provide us with a list of who is sent there. The government’s resistance to that reasonable step is astounding.” Please stand with us as we continue to advocate for the closure of Guantanamo: - Join the Organizational “Close Guantánamo” Sign-on Statement: Congregations and organizations are invited to join an organizational sign-on statement addressing both post-9/11 detention and immigrant detention at Guantánamo. NRCAT has signed the statement, and we invite your organization or congregation to join legal, immigrant justice, human rights, faith and other organizations in the statement. It is open for signature until January 8 and will be made public on January 11. Click here to read the statement and add organizational sign-ons.
- Join a January 11 Vigil: NRCAT is co-sponsoring vigils and rallies in cities across the country, on January 11 and regularly on the first Wednesday of the month. If your religious organization would like to host or co-sponsor a Close Guantánamo event or to receive a “Close Guantánamo” banner, please contact Rev. T.C. Morrow, at [email protected].
- Support NRCAT’s Work in 2026: As we are in our year-end fundraising campaign, I invite you to donate to NRCAT today to strengthen the work of our staff and faith partners in confronting the moral stain of Guantánamo and pressing for its permanent closure.
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