Witch Hunts
From Salem to Guantanamo Bay

Publisher:  McGill-Queen's University Press, Canada
Resource Type:  Book
Cx Number:  CX9432

Robert Rapley's book is a bleak history. From the witch hunts of Salem, the Dreyfus case to the torture of Maher Arar and to the abuses of Abu Graib and Guantanamo he contends that the fears and ignorance from one century to another may change but the outcome is still the same. The accused is guilty before evidence is sought, beatings and torture are justifiable and since the accused is so dangerous other accomplices must be found. Everything from the petty to the huge is justified and buried with no accountability in the name of protecting society, the state or national security. He has written of our lamentable history from the 16th century to the omnious threat of the Patriot Act II.