He will never get back the time away from his family, his
friends and his life as a third-generation Chinese American who had
converted to Islam.
Former U.S. Army Chaplain James Yusuf Yee was arrested by the
U.S. and put in solitary confinement on charges of espionage,
sedition and treason, among others. The charges were later dropped
and he was honorably discharged from the military last January.
Now he is taking his story to the public.
Yee spoke to a crowd of students and community members in the
Kerckhoff Art Gallery on Thursday night.
“His story is so compelling. … He personified the
consequences of a post-9/11 world,” said Lynne Nguyen,
director of the Asian Pacific Location, which hosted the event with
the Muslim Students Association.
Nguyen said APC was contacted by Nikkei for Civil Rights and
Redress to hold a discussion with Yee at UCLA.
The event was the first in a series of speakers who will come to
UCLA to discuss the relationship between immigration, war and
politics.
For Yee, the issues at hand go much deeper than simply
politics.
Yee was held in custody for 76 days at a South Carolina
maximum-security prison in 2004 after he was detained at the
Jacksonville International Airport in Florida on suspicion of
possessing confidential documents and information. He had just
served for 10 months to promote understanding of Islam at
Guantanamo Bay, a U.S. prison complex in Cuba, and was returning to
see his family. He was accused of capital crimes and threatened
with the death penalty for his alleged acts of treason.
As a returning officer in the military and a West Point
graduate, he could not understand the way he was treated.
“That they would actually throw me in jail … threaten me
with the death penalty,” he said. “That is shocking to
me.”
Yee said the cell block he was assigned was completely vacated.
His family did not receive the news of his arrest until 10 days
later, when major news outlets picked up the story after it was
leaked from government sources.
Eventually, the government realized its mistake, but in place of
the accusations of capital crimes, Yee said he was charged with
adultery and computer pornography. Those charges were later dropped
as well.
Yee believes the fact that he is a Muslim was a key factor in
the case. Yee converted to Islam in 1991.
When the military was looking for Muslim chaplains, he took up
the offer and was sent to Guantanamo Bay in 2003 to serve as
chaplain to prisoners. Yee recalled instances of guards desecrating
copies of the Koran in the prison, an act that caused some
prisoners to become suicidal, he said.
Through his experience, Yee said he realized the importance of
protection for the civil liberties of U.S. citizens.
He said his book “For God and Country” discusses the
fundamental values the U.S. is based on and how critical they are
to “our way of life,” as well as serves as a warning
about the United States’ approach in the domestic war on
terror.
Yee is still seeking an apology from the government, though he
has not made any progress so far.
“It would restore faith in military leadership,” he
said.
Yee believes Muslim and Chinese communities have been feeling
the repercussions of world politics and their effect on the
opinions of the general public.
Other students also voiced these concerns, saying that continued
education on issues is key.
“It’s an ongoing problem and we really haven’t
done anything on campus,” said Aliya Hussaini, MSA external
vice president.