Detainees were not allowed to talk to each other, but we enjoyed looking at each other. The punishment for talking was hanging the detainee by his hands with the feet barely touching the ground.
Interpretation
The quote reflects on the human desire for connection even in oppressive circumstances.
In this quote, Mohamedou Ould Slahi conveys the deep-seated need for interaction and connection among individuals, even when they are under severe restrictions. The harsh punishment for talking among detainees highlights the oppressive nature of their situation, yet the act of simply looking at each other suggests a shared humanity that persists despite confinement and suffering. It underscores the resilience of the human spirit and the importance of companionship in the face of adversity.
In practice
This quote could be used in a discussion about the importance of camaraderie in difficult times.
Everything a detainee says is classified. Detainees cannot talk to you. They cannot talk to anyone. They cannot challenge, in a meaningful way, their detention. All that is left is for people who survived Guantanamo Bay to speak for people who are left behind, and speak for those who are in so many Guantanamos, plural, in my part of the world.
I have never felt as violated in myself as I had since the DoD team started to torture me to get me admit to things I haven't done.
I think it's interesting how people act on their beliefs. A lot of Christians, for instance, wear crosses around their necks. Nice sentiment, but do you think when Jesus comes back, he's really going to want to look at a cross?
The new American finds his challenge and his love in the traffic-choked streets, skies nested in smog, choking with the acids of industry, the screech of rubber and houses leashed in against one another while the town lets wither a time and die.
I have not asked for life._x000D_ But I try to accept whatever_x000D_ life brings without surprise._x000D_ And I shall depart again without having_x000D_ questioned anyone about my strange_x000D_ stay here on earth.
Under conditions of peace the warlike man attacks himself.
The human bones are but vain lines dawdling, the whole universe a blank mold of stars.
At first sight experience seems to bury us under a flood of external objects, pressing upon us with a sharp and importunate reality, calling us out of ourselves in a thousand forms of action.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.