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THE ARTICLE

Lynndie England, the U.S. soldier who was photographed holding a naked Iraqi prisoner on a leash, pleaded guilty to prisoner abuse and other charges today. She confessed to seven charges, including conspiracy, maltreatment of prisoners, dereliction of duty and indecent acts. England faces a maximum prison term of sixteen years, although it is likely she will receive less. Her lawyers will present evidence before a jury that she has mental health problems and learning disabilities. The ringleader of the photo abuse scandal, Charles Graner, was sentenced in January to ten years in prison and will receive a dishonorable discharge.

The photographs of England and her colleagues humiliating and abusing Iraqi detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison shocked the world last year and sparked outrage in Arab nations. There was widespread condemnation of the U.S. military and calls for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to resign. Despite fervent claims that orders for the abuse came from high up in the U.S. chain of command, only low-ranking soldiers have been brought to trial. England’s lawyers have argued that Lynndie was acting on orders from above to “soften up” the prisoners before interrogation. The feeling is still widespread that Ms England and her colleagues are being used as scapegoats.

WARM UPS

1. CHAT: Talk in pairs or groups about: U.S. soldiers / Abu Ghraib prison / naked Iraqi prisoners scandal / Donald Rumsfeld / image of U.S. military / scapegoats… For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently.

2. SCANDAL: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word “scandal”. Share your words with your partner / group and talk about them.

3. THE PHOTOS: In pairs / groups, interview each other about what you remember of the Abu Ghraib prison abuse photos. What images can you recall? Did you want to see all of the photos? What was your initial reaction? How did you think it would affect world opinion? Who did you think was responsible?

4. DETAINEE RIGHTS: What are the rights of detainees being held by the army of another country? Make a list of five basic rights with a partner. Change partners. Add your list to your new partner’s list and make a new list, putting five rights in order of importance. Return to your original partner and compare your new lists.

5. LYNNDIE OPINIONS: Look at the following opinions about the Lynndie England case and talk about them with your partner / group:

1. Lynndie England should receive the maximum 16 years in prison for her actions.
2. Donald Rumsfeld is ultimately responsible. He should have resigned.
3. Lynndie has a little baby. She mustn’t go to prison.
4. The photos were not so shocking. That kind of thing probably happens in prisons everywhere.
5. Soldiers with “learning disabilities” should not be put in charge of detainees.
6. U.S. soldiers have a responsibility to stick to the highest standards of behaviour.
7. Lynndie England is a scapegoat for the U.S. military.
8. It’s clear that what she did was wrong. But sixteen years in prison is way too long.
9. George W. Bush needs to sincerely apologize to Arab nations for this outrage.

PRE-READING IDEAS

1. WORD SEARCH: Use your dictionary / computer to find word partners (collocates), other meanings, synonyms or more information on the words ‘prisoner’ and ‘abuse’.

2. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

1. Lynndie England has pleaded not guilty to charges of prisoner abuse.  T / F
2. Lynndie England faces a maximum sentence of 16 years.  T / F
3. A jury decided Lynndie was of sound mind when the photos were taken.  T / F
4. Lynndie is the first U.S. soldier to be tried.  T / F
5. The Abu Ghraib photos caused uproar among Arab nations.  T / F
6. U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld resigned.  T / F
7. Orders for the abuse came from high up in the U.S. chain of command.  T / F
8. Many believe Lynndie is being unfairly used to shoulder the blame.  T / F

3. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

4. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

WHILE READING ACTIVITIES

1. GAP FILL: Fill the gaps with the words in the column on the right.

Soldier admits guilt over Iraq photos

2. TRUE/FALSE: Check your answers to the T/F exercise.

3. SYNONYM MATCH: Check your answers to this exercise.

4. PHRASE MATCH: Check your answers to this exercise.

5. QUESTIONS: Make notes for questions you would like to ask the class about the article.

6. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

POST READING IDEAS

1. GAP FILL: Check your answers to this exercise.

2. QUESTIONS: Ask the discussion questions you thought of above to your partner / group / class. Pool the questions for everyone to share.

3. VOCABULARY: As a class, go over the vocabulary students circled above.

4. STUDENT ABU GHRAIB SURVEY: In pairs/groups write down questions about the Abu Ghraib photo scandal. Ask other classmates your questions and report back to your original partner/ group to compare your findings.

5. ‘PRISONER’ / ‘ABUSE’: Make questions based on your findings from pre-reading activity #1. Ask your partner / group your questions.

6. DISCUSSION:

1. Did you like this article?
2. Did anything in the article make you angry?
3. Did you agree with everything you read  in the article?
4. How do you feel about the Abu Ghraib photo scandal?
5. The media often use the word “scandal” in this story. Do you think “outrage” is a more accurate word?
6. What should Lynndie England’s sentence be?
7. Do you think she was acting on orders from above?
8. Do you think Donald Rumsfeld should have shouldered the blame?
9. How much have the photos harmed the U.S. military?
10. How bad do you think the photos were?
11. A proverb says “all’s fair in love and war”. Do you think the humiliation shown in the photos is an acceptable way of getting information from prisoners?
12. U.S. forces have demolished the Abu Ghraib prison camp. Is this enough?
13. Should the prisoners in the photos be given compensation?
14. Do the prisoners in the photos have the right to sue the U.S. Government?
15. If you compare what happens in wartime prisons, don’t you think these photos are a storm in a tea cup?
16. Should President George W. Bush apologize to Arab nations for the photos?
17. Is Lynndie England being used as a scapegoat?
18. Did you like this discussion?
19. Teacher / Student additional questions.

7. ABU GHRAIB ROLE PLAY: Use the following role play cards in a discussion about the Abu Ghraib photos – You have to agree on a sentence for Lynndie England. Team up with your role partners to expand your role and develop your “strategy” before the role play begins. The hints under each role may help you develop your strategy. After the role play, discuss whether you really believed what you were saying.

THE ROLES:

Student A
Lynndie England:
Orders from above / “soften up” / my baby / learning problems / learnt my lesson …

Student B
Lynndie England’s mother:
Wonderful daughter, Lynndie’s new baby, suffered enough, scapegoat …

Student C
Donald Rumsfeld (U.S. Defense Secretary):
Not my problem, justice must be done, maximum prison sentence to keep Arab nations happy, terrible woman to tarnish U.S. military image …

Student D
Abu Ghraib prisoner:
Degraded, humiliated, cannot sleep, pain, insult to my religion and people, she enjoyed it, want sixteen years for Lynndie …

8. PRISONER RIGHTS: Your task is to decide which of the following prisoners should have in a prisoner of war camp. You must choose no fewer than three and no more than six. Provide rules and conditions next to the choices you make.

After you have set the conditions, tell another partner / group what you decided. Your partner(s) will give you feedback on your decisions.

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find information on Abu Ghraib. Share your findings with your class in the next lesson.

3. LYNNDIE’S SENTENCE: You are the judge in the Lynndie England case. Decide her sentence and explain your reasoning.

4. PUBLIC IMAGE: Write an article on the effect of the Abu Ghraib photos on America’s image around the world.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

1. Lynndie England has pleaded not guilty to charges of prisoner abuse.  F
2. Lynndie England faces a maximum sentence of 16 years.  T
3. A jury decided Lynndie was of sound mind when the photos were taken.  F
4. Lynndie is the first U.S. soldier to be tried.  F
5. The Abu Ghraib photos caused uproar among Arab nations.  T
6. U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld resigned.  F
7. Orders for the abuse came from high up in the U.S. chain of command.  ?
8. Many believe Lynndie is being unfairly used to shoulder the blame.  T

SYNONYM MATCH:

PHRASE MATCH:

GAP FILL:

Soldier admits guilt over Iraq photos

Lynndie England, the U.S. soldier who was photographed holding a naked Iraqi prisoner on a leash, pleaded guilty to prisoner abuse and other charges today. She confessed to seven charges, including conspiracy, maltreatment of prisoners, dereliction of duty and indecent acts. England faces a maximum prison term of sixteen years, although it is likely she will receive less. Her lawyers will present evidence before a jury that she has mental health problems and learning disabilities. The ringleader of the photo abuse scandal, Charles Graner, was sentenced in January to ten years in prison and will receive a dishonorable discharge.

The photographs of England and her colleagues humiliating and abusing Iraqi detainees at the Abu Ghraib prison shocked the world last year and sparked outrage among Arab nations. There was widespread condemnation of the U.S. military and calls for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to resign. Despite fervent claims that orders for the abuse came from high up in the U.S. chain of command, only low-ranking soldiers have been brought to trial. England’s lawyers have argued that Lynndie was acting on orders from above to “soften up” the prisoners before interrogation. The feeling is still widespread that Ms England and her colleagues are being used as scapegoats.