Shadow Lives

Victoria Brittain is a respected journalist who tirelessly fought the US government on Guantanamo Bay in articles and books. Her work on women and children in conflict has transformed war reporting; subverting tired militaristic narratives. She has been a consultant to the UN on The Impact of Conflict on Women. She is a trustee of Prisoners of Conscience and the author of The Meaning of Waiting (Oberon, 2010), Shadow Lives (Pluto, 2013) and co-author of Moazzam Begg's Enemy Combatant (2007).

Shadow Lives reveals the unseen side of the '9/11 wars': their impact on the wives and families of men incarcerated in Guantanamo, or in prison or under house arrest in Britain and the US. Victoria Brittain shows how these families have been made socially invisible and a convenient scapegoat for the state in order to exercise arbitrary powers under the cover of the 'War on Terror'. A disturbing expose of the perilous state of freedom and democracy in our society, the book reveals how a culture of intolerance and cruelty has left individuals at the mercy of the security services' unverifiable accusations and punitive punishments. Both a j'accuse and a testament to the strength and humanity of the families, Shadow Lives shows the methods of incarceration and social control being used by the British state and gives a voice to the families whose lives have been turned upside down. In doing so it raises urgent questions about civil liberties which no one can afford to ignore.

Acknowledgements Foreword by John Berger Introduction 1 - From Palestine to Guantanamo 2 - From Medina to Guantanamo 3 - From Palestine and Africa to house arrest in London 4 - From Jordan to Belmarsh prison 5 - From Egypt to Long Lartin prison 6 - The South London families 7 - Daughters and Sisters 8 - Families surviving the war on terror Afterword by Marina Warner Endnotes Bibliography Index