Shadow Lives

Book excerpt: 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 have 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.