Americans call for Guantanamo prison closure

Protesters wearing orange jumpsuits and bags over their heads rallied outside of the White House Sunday, calling for the immediate closure of the prison.
 
"We are not here to make angels out of prisoners. We don't know them. But we know they are men," said one protester.
 
The activists criticized Washington’s double standards and said if any other government was “responsible for a place of injustice like Guantanamo, it would surely draw US condemnation.”
 
“It's long past time for the US authorities to end the double-speak — and the double standard," Amnesty International published an article on its website Saturday.
 
The crowd also called on President Barack Obama to shut down the prison.
 
"Mr. President I need you to know, that if it were you, hooded and chained, we'd be right here demanding the same human rights for you," said another protester.
 
Obama had promised to close the Guantanamo Bay prison before his election in 2008, citing its damage to the US reputation abroad.
 
However, there are still 127 inmates at the prison, which was set up after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
 
The Guantanamo prison, where many of the terror suspects have been held without a charge or trial, was opened in January 2002.