Submit a Letter to the Editor (LTE): 
Fact Not Fiction campaign

In light of the movie Zero Dark Thirty, please join NRCAT’s efforts to reiterate that the use of torture is immoral, illegal and counterproductive by submitting a letter-to-the-editor responding to articles in your local paper. Here's how: 

• Read our LTE tips. 
• Find an article in your local newspaper about either Zero Dark Thirty or the Senate Intelligence Committee's report on CIA torture to respond to.
• Use our talking points (below) to help you craft your LTE.
• Please inform us when you submit your letter.

Talking Points
Letters to the Editor must be short, so we have repeated several key themes in the talking points below.  Please pick only a few of these talking points for your letter.  Your letter should be no longer than 150 words.

• Hollywood loves torture.  Horror movies are filled with it of course, but it’s also a popular trope these days to show a good guy beating information out of a bad guy.  The movie “Zero Dark Thirty” follows this pattern in its fictional account of how we found and killed Osama bin Laden.
• The recently released movie, “Zero Dark Thirty” is a piece of fiction that looks almost like journalism.  It portrays torture as a critical interrogation technique – contrary to what we’ve been told by former interrogators and by political leaders from both sides of the political spectrum (Senator John McCain, a Republican, and Senator Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat). 
• Torture doesn’t work.   Interrogators say that you obtain unreliable information using it.  It’s also inhumane and against American values – our country has long stood for human rights and decency – we believe in treating even our enemies in the right way.
• People from all sides of the political spectrum know that torture is ineffective and immoral – a points that have been made by Republicans, like Senator John McCain, and Democrats, like Senator Dianne Feinstein.
• Torture is immoral.  It is also ineffective, a fact that the public has the right to know, but the critical point is that is immoral.  Above all, Americans should remain true to our values.  The National Religious Campaign Against Torture is an interfaith campaign dedicated to providing people of faith with ways to uphold their values by ending torture.  I believe we should all join them in this work.
• The Senate Intelligence Committee recently finished an investigation into CIA torture.  Members of the Committee claim that the report on their investigation shows that torture harmed our national security and that it did not lead us to Osama bin Laden.  The report should be  released so that the public can know the facts about torture.
• “Zero Dark Thirty” is a fictional movie that falsely portrays torture as an important interrogation technique.  The public should know the facts – facts that are in a recent report by the Senate Intelligence Committee.  Opinions should be informed by fact – not fiction.

Please let us know that you have submitted a letter to the editor - use this quick response form.

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