Constitutional Law

Coney Island Takes On Guantanamo Bay Theme

New York’s Coney Island is not likely to jump to one's mind as a forum for discussion of American interrogation policies of Guantanamo Bay detainees. But, as The New York Times reports, artist Steve Powers created a display called the “Waterboard Thrill Ride” near the theme park’s Cyclone ride on West 12th Street that invokes images of harsh interrogation methods that have been used at the military base. The display’s facade features, likenesses of Nickelodeon’s cartoon characters SpongeBobSquarePants and Squidward, with SpongeBob chained to a concrete slab, proclaiming “It don’t Gitmo better!” Additionally the work contains animatronics simulating water boarding. Powers tells the Times that his work is intended to prompt people to think about U.S. interrogation policies.  See New York Times photos of the display here and here.

Full post as published by ACS Blog on August 07, 2008 (boomark / email).