U.S. Torture Accountability and Survivor Support

Holding the United States accountable for torture

When President Obama signed Executive Order 13491, which effectively ended the torture policies of the Bush administration, he signaled a return to a core American value: the right to be free from torture. But it wasn't enough. Not only is torture immoral, it is also illegal. The government officials who authorized interrogation techniques such as water boarding violated the U.S. Constitution and the Geneva Conventions and must be held accountable. This is critical to the continued success of America's democracy.

In order to ensure that torture is never authorized or used by the United States again, we must first understand who was responsible for policies that resulted in Abu Ghraib and then hold them responsible for those crimes. It is incumbent upon everyone in the United States to call for a full investigation of the Bush torture policies through an independent commission of inquiry. 

Supporting torture survivors in their healing process

The United States has always been a place for people seeking political asylum to find sanctuary from other countries where torture and trauma are a tragic fact of life. Survivors of torture and war trauma often face large obstacles to adjusting to life after their experiences and life in the United States. But survivors have an important voice as anti-torture activists and as advocates for other survivors.

Empowering survivors to work against unjust laws that authorize torture throughout the world and to advocate for more humane U.S. asylum and immigration policies is an important aspect of healing. For many survivors of torture, recovering their voices as human-rights activists is an incredibly important aspect of the healing journey.

To learn more about how you can support this work, please visit our Stop Torture page and get involved!

Partnership in action

Center for Victims of Torture (CVT)

UUSC works with the Center for Victims of Torture though their Washington, D.C., office to convene grassroots activists working for U.S. accountability on torture. Together, UUSC, CVT, and grassroots anti-torture organizations are building long-term momentum for U.S. accountability.

National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT)

UUSC works with NRCAT to mobilize Unitarian Universalists to educate their congregations on the impact of torture and become active anti-torture advocates. Through their campaign to call for a Commission of Inquiry in the United States and the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, NRCAT and UUSC ensure that Unitarian Universalists are an important voice in preventing and ending torture.

Torture Abolition and Survivor Support Coalition (TASSC)

As the only organizations founded by and for torture survivors, TASSC works to support survivors in their healing processes and empower them to be vocal and compelling anti-torture advocates. Through their Communities of Healing program, UUSC is working with TASSC to develop self-healing methodologies and effective advocacy campaigns for TASSC survivors across the United States.