The Center for Torture Accountability's website went live January 11th of this year, the eighth anniversary of the first prisoner arriving at Guantanamo. The goal of the site is to document the individuals who created and justified the US torture regime. There is a flood of information coming out about the Bush administration's torture regime. The website hopes to capture some of that flood of information and make it accessible to the public.

A lot of work has been accomplished

There are a now eighteen profiles on the site. Some, such as Patrick Philbin, James Mitchell, Cofer Black, and Diane Beaver are rather rich and detailed.

A lot of work remains

As of right now, John Rizzo's profile needs a lot of work. John Rizzo is a lawyer for the Central Intelligence Agency, which is never eager to disclose information, and that is part of the reason the profile is so empty. But the primary reason has been a lack of time and people power. Mary Walker is another person who needs a lot of work. While the profile is clear and well written, the sources supporting the claims are not yet in the database. To a lesser extent, James Pavitt also falls into that category.William Haynes is the opposite: well sourced, but the writing has barely begun.

A community helps

I am not alone. I did create this project and build the website (and plan to soon rebuild it in Drupal), but others have joined in. My mother, for example, has been invaluable with the research, writing, and editing. My good friend Cesar designed the logo pro bono. Nice, huh? And dozens have donated, giving the Center a small, but meaningful, budget. The Washington Peace Center has helped out a lot as our fiscal sponsor. And we move forward now, stronger than ever.