A story of forgiveness and fearlessness under the deterioration of democracy

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Dear John,

Yesterday, I had the privilege to speak to Mohamedou Ould Salahi, who wrote Guantánamo Diary after his experiences of solitary confinement and torture. We were joined by Oscar-winning actor, producer, director Jodie Foster, and Golden Globe-nominated actor Tahar Rahim. Jodie and Tahar are the stars of the upcoming STXFilms’ The Mauritanian, which is currently out in theaters and available On Demand on March 2nd.
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Watch the webinar. ([link removed])
Based on Guantánamo Diary, The Mauritanian is a story of forgiveness and fearlessness under the deterioration of democracy. In 2007, I was one of the first Muslim men to go to Guantánamo Bay voluntarily. I came back determined that MPAC would work to close down the detention camp and leave it as a museum, like Manzanar, a reminder to us that we will never go there again. While we may not see that realization in our lifetime, we can plant the seeds for restoring the rule of law for all people, to hold our government accountable to the Constitution and international human rights law. In the webinar, we discussed Mohamedou’s experiences with his captors, gaining freedom, and proving his innocence.

The Mauritanian follows Nancy Hollander, a defense attorney, her associate Teri Duncan (Shailene Woodley), and Lt. Colonel Stuart Couch, a military prosecutor (Benedict Cumberbatch), as they uncover a far-reaching conspiracy while investigating the case of Mohamedou, the protagonist of the film.You can watch the trailer here. ([link removed] on Guantánamo Diary, The Mauritanian is a story of forgiveness and fearlessness under the deterioration of democracy. In 2007, I was one of the first Muslim men to go to Guantánamo Bay voluntarily. I came back determined that MPAC would work to close down the detention camp and leave it as a museum, like Manzanar, a reminder to us that we will never go there again. While we may not see that realization in our lifetime, we can plant the seeds for restoring the rule of law for all people, to hold our government accountable to the Constitution and international human rights law. In the webinar, we discussed Mohamedou’s experiences with his captors, gaining
freedom, and proving his innocence. The Mauritanian follows Nancy Hollander, a defense attorney, her associate Teri Duncan (Shailene Woodley), and Lt. Colonel Stuart Couch, a military prosecutor (Benedict Cumberbatch), as they uncover a far-reaching conspiracy while investigating the case of Mohamedou, the protagonist of the film. You can watch the trailer here.)

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Watch the trailer. ([link removed])
To read my reflection of the 2007 Guantánamo Bay trip, please click here. ([link removed])

May God bless those who were and continue to be wrongfully imprisoned and detained in Guantánamo Bay and the United States of America, where we must fight for the presumption of innocence as a cornerstone of our democracy.
In service,

Salam Al-Marayati
MPAC President

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