4/18/07: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales attended his 25th Harvard Law School reunion Saturday unannounced, in the midst of widespread calls for his resignation over his role in the firing of federal prosecutors for political purposes. But Gonzales’ hope of having a quiet Saturday afternoon to take a class photo and chat with old law school chums would not pan out as planned due the the actions of several Harvard Law students.
As Gonzales and his classmates posed for a picture outside the law library, student dressed like Guantanamo Bay detainees stood in the background reminding the Harvard Law Class of ’82 that they were being photoed with one of the chief legal architects of torture.
RAW STORY reported:
As the photographer said cheese, the group said students yelled that
“torture,” “resign” or “I don’t recall” might be more appropriate.The Justice Department could not immediately be reached for comment.
“When I heard he was on campus, I was stuffing envelopes with
letters to Congress in an office two floors above,” said Deborah
Popowski, a second-year law student, according to the release. “I
dropped everything. Gonzales needs to know that after approving
poorly-reasoned memos that distort the rule of law and justify torture,
he is simply not welcome here.”According the the group, Popowski slipped though the law library’s
front doors and approached Gonzales from behind as the Attorney
General’s security detail kept protesters at bay.“On behalf of many other Harvard Law students,” she said, “I’d like
to tell you that we are ashamed to have you as an alumnus of this
school. And we’re glad you’re here to be able to tell you that.”Gonzales allegedly thanked the student and offered to shake her hand, but was refused.
Following the photo, Gonzales was said to have entered the library,
traveled to the reading room, then ducked out through a basement
emergency exit and into a waiting SUV.
The actions of these Harvard Law students are exactly what is needed
at campuses all across the country. If a Bush administration official
is speaking at your graduation, make plans now for what you’re going to
do.
