SAMs which stands for “special administrative measures” , are a series of extreme restrictions placed on inmates deemed to be a risk to national security . SAMs are predominately imposed on Muslim American inmates , and have been deemed to be cruel and unusual punishment , and a form of torture under international law . We believe that despite his crimes , all prisoners deserve human rights and that Dzhokhar “Jahar” Tsarnaev’s civil liberties are being severely violated without justification.

An Islamophobic Political Tool 

While not all inmates in the United States who are under SAMs are Muslim, it is clear that they are disproportionately used against Muslims. The use of SAMs ramped up significantly since 9/11. In 2001, only 16 federal prisoners in the US were under SAMs. That number has increased to 51 as of 2017. The majority of these prisoners are Muslim. It is also obvious that Muslims under SAMs are being treated differently as inmates from other religions who are under SAMs are allowed to meet privately with religious clergy , whereas inmates who want to meet with an imam are forced to communicate with them by yelling through a steel door. 

Another point is that Ted “The Unabomber “ Kaczynski , another domestic terrorist being housed at ADX Florence , is not under the same restrictions as Jahar . He is not only allowed to freely send mail , but even give interviews with the media. An audio interview of his appears in a Netflix documentary called “The Unabomber: In His Own Words”. Kaczynski states in one portion of the interview that he is glad to hear he’s become a radical public figure and that he hopes to “inspire people”. The main reason stated for Jahar’s SAMs is to stop him from influencing people , yet another convicted bomber is allowed to do exactly that ! The key difference is that only one of them is Muslim . 

 

Violation of Human Rights 

SAMs are a violation of human rights under international law , as well as the Eighth Amendment of the US Constitution, which outlaws “cruel and unusual punishment “. SAMs are arguably a cruel and unusual punishment. They also violate other fundamental human rights such as freedom of speech , attorney-client privilege , religious freedom , and family unity . Inmates who have been subjected to SAMs have often suffered from serious physical and psychological issues as a result of their severe isolation . According to the United Nations, prolonged solitary confinement can cause serious harm to prisoners after only 2 weeks. 

Jahar’s Case 

Jahar has been subjected to SAMs since August 2013, for nearly a decade . What exactly does this look like ? To paint a picture , he is under severe restrictions in addition to already being confined to a small cell in ADX Florence for 23 hours a day . He is only allowed to have one 15-minute phone call per month with an immediate family member , and can receive one 3-page letter per week from an immediate family member. The only approved visitors are also immediate family members. Outside of his family , the only other communication he is allowed to have is with his attorneys. He is not allowed to talk to the media , and has even been banned from sending his sisters photographs of himself. Since he is not allowed to communicate in any language besides English , this essentially bars him from communicating with his father , who speaks very little English. His own nieces and nephews aren’t allowed to speak to him on the phone , and his sisters legally aren’t even allowed to pass on messages from him to their kids .

There is no justification for why Jahar needs to remain under SAMs after a decade . The argument made by the government is that he poses a risk to national security and might inspire others to commit acts of violence . I believe there is no compelling evidence for why that’s the case , and that he is actually being subject to punishment just because he’s Muslim, and a high profile inmate who has sparked extreme outrage from the public . SAMs are supposed to be reviewed yearly , so it seems preposterous that every time , they have found that SAMs for Jahar continues to be justified . He was just 19 years old when he committed the crime , and had been brainwashed by his older brother . He has had a whole decade to sit and think about what he’s done , and there is no evidence that he continues to believe in Islamic extremism . Despite what many have said , he seemed genuinely remorseful at his trial . It seems that he knows his actions go against Islam, and that he is now living out his sentence repenting and dedicating himself to his faith.

Additionally, how is it possible for someone to inspire others to commit terrorism when all of their communications are monitored ? Even if he was allowed to send mail , have phone calls and visits with people outside of his family , and talk to the media , everything he says would be monitored , as is the case for all inmates. Not only that , but his communications are also already monitored by the FBI, not just the prison itself.

Lastly , there are serious human rights concerns:

• He had no right to a fair trial because his SAMs had been enforced since 2013, nearly 2 years before his trial . A fundamental aspect of a fair trial is being able to speak openly with one’s legal counsel , he has never had the opportunity to speak privately with his attorneys 
  
  
• There is no way for a prisoner under SAMs to speak out about the mistreatment against them . Others can’t even advocate on their behalf as the very few people allowed to speak with the individual are under a gag order , people have gone to prison just for repeating statements made to them by a prisoner under SAMs
• Jahar filed a lawsuit regarding the mistreatment against him , and that his SAMs are causing him psychological damage and breakdown of his familial relationships. He was not even allowed to send a photo to his sisters , and I don’t understand what the justification for that could be 

Regardless of what you may think of the young man’s crimes , the truth of the matter is that everyone in the United States is entitled to basic human rights . Allowing Jahar’s SAMs to continue constitutes cruel and unusual punishment , and it also sets a dangerous precedent for the continued use of extreme measures against Muslims in America. Please help us speak out about injustice by signing and sharing this petition ! 

Kindly also sign my other petition opposing the death penalty for Jahar !

https://www.change.org/OverturnDPForTsarnaev

For further reading : https://ccrjustice.org/sites/default/files/attach/2017/09/SAMs%20Report.Final_.pdf