Desperate Times, Desperate Measures: Executive Powers, Individual Rights, and Guantanamo Bay Prison

National Council for the Social Studies. 8555 Sixteenth Street #500, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Tel: 800-683-0812; Tel: 301-588-1800; Fax: 301-588-2049; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: http://www.socialstudies.org

Y

3

Thinking Skills; Civil Rights; Foreign Countries; Democracy; Correctional Institutions; National Security; Court Litigation; Political Power; Political Attitudes; Political Issues; Controversial Issues (Course Content); Social Studies; Teaching Methods; United States History

Cuba; United States

0037-7724

In the recent past, and especially since September 11, 2001, many democratic nations have been forced to deal with the threat of attacks on their land. Former U.S. President George W. Bush famously labeled this challenge the "War on Terror." Examining how nations address this issue offers a golden opportunity for social studies teachers to increase the critical thinking skills of their students regarding violations of human rights, while clarifying their position on governmental power in times of crisis. To demonstrate how teachers can effectively use post-9/11 events in the classroom, this article focuses on the executive decisions and court cases pertaining to the U.S. military prison located in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The controversy surrounding the treatment of prisoners detained at Guantanamo illustrates the difficulty a constitutional democracy faces when balancing national security demands against the constitutional rights of detainees. (Contains 2 online resources and 21 notes.)

ERIC

2013

EJ1003784