Amy Goodman, Democracy NOW!
. . . . . .
“A sober, focused piece that asks Americans to
take another look at what is going on in their own backyard.”
Dave Kehr
New York Times, Nov. 7, 2003
Read Full Review
. . . . . .
“Anyone who's seen Hidden in Plain Sight could have predicted
everything lately revealed about the new prison system in Iraq,
and indeed the entire invasion-occupation farce.”
John Patterson
The Guardian, May 14, 2004
Read Full Review
. . . . . .
“Critics call it the ‘School of Assassins’
because they believe such handy techniques as torture
and methods of terrorism are taught there....
Certainly worth thinking about in this day and age.”
G. Allen Johnson
San Francisco Chronicle, Nov. 7, 2003
Read Full Review
. . . . . .
“U.S. culpability in crimes against humanity is overt
in the eyes of many Latin Americans.”
Leah C. Wells
CommonDreams.org
. . . . . .
“Compelling....unsettling....a subtle indictment of American taxpayer's
passive complicity.”
Joshua Land
The Village Voice
. . . . . .
“Hats off to John H. Smihula for this hard-hitting documentary that exposes
the crimes against humanity done in the name of extending U.S. power and
influence in Latin America.”
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality & Health
. . . . . .
It is not in spite of its liberal bias, but because of it,
that this film should be seen.
Ray Conlogue
Toronto Globe & Mail
. . . . . .
“It's clear on which side of the debate English professor-turned-filmmaker
John H. Smihula stands, and the evidence his well-researched
documentary presents... is, to say the least, troubling.”
Ken Fox
TV Guide
. . . . . .
“For an educator in the area of international social justice issues, ‘Hidden in Plain Sight’ is an incredibly powerful tool. It comprehensively portrays both sides of the issue while addressing the most common justifications for the School of Americas. Its a landmark film - extremely well made and absolutely indispensable for any educator wanting to delve deeply into the murky world of US foreign and economic policy.”
Robert Polack PhD
Assistant Professor of Social Work
Southeast Missouri State University
. . . . . .
“‘Hidden in Plain Sight’ is a wonderful, if disturbing, film that documents the horrors of U.S. military training through the lens of the notorious School of the Americas (SOA). By unveiling the complicity of the United States in murder, torture and repression in Latin America, the film simultaneously raises questions about the current “war on terror” waged by the Bush administration around the world. Everyone who is concerned with social justice should see this important new film.”
Lesley Gill
Professor of Anthropology
American University
. . . . . .
The School of the Americas (SOA)--also known as "The School of
Assassins"–has raised the ire of many a human rights activist over the years, and rightly
so. Touted as a means of promoting democracy and unity with Latin America, SOA
essentially operated as a training ground for some 60,000 soldiers--at least
one in 100 of whom returned to his home country (e.g., Nicaragua, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Colombia, etc.) to maim, rape, and generally terrorize the
populace. Manuel Noriega graduated from the SOA, as did many death squad leaders.
Although the United States Army continues to deny these allegations some three
years after SOA's closure (the organization was replaced by the Western
Hemisphere Institute for Security Operations–different name, same purpose, same
location at Fort Benning, Georgia), this documentary written and directed by John H.
Smihula offers an unflinching indictment of the school's practices. Narrated
by Martin Sheen and including interviews with SOA Watch's Father Roy
Bourgeois, political commentators Noam Chomsky and Christopher Hitchens, and victims of SOA alumni (including Sister Dianna Ortiz, who endured horrifying torture in
Guatemala as an American observer looked on), Hidden in Plain Sight captures
the absurdity of the Army's enterprise while commenting broadly on the
consequences of U.S. imperial aspirations. The reason for the SOA's existence is
directly linked to oil interests and corporate expansion; that so many died to
satisfy the lust for power of so few is nothing less than a crime against humanity.
Caroline Palmer
City Pages, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota
Nov. 7, 2003
. . . . . .
"This powerful documentary examines the role of the Army School of the
Americas from the vantage points of U.S. military commanders, academic
critics, Latin American intellectuals, protesters, and victims of human
rights abuses at the hands of school graduates. It presents an analysis of
the School's mission in the context of U.S. interests in Latin America, and
penetrates several layers of the secrecy that still surrounds the School's
operations. "Hidden in Plain Sight" documents the impact of
counterinsurgency warfare in the region in human as well as geopolitical
terms. By presenting different sides of the case, the film allows its
audience to draw its own conclusions. I highly recommend the film for
college classrooms, where it will spark important discussions on a range of
topics from human rights to the role of the military to the nature of
U.S.-Latin American relations."
J. Patrice McSherry, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Political Science
Long Island University
. . . . . .
What's most amazing about this angering, riveting documentary from director
John H. Smihula is that it isn't an exposé. Everything it shows--that is, the
shockingly countless acts of terror, torture, and violence that the United
States has trained Latin American military personnel to visit upon their own
people via the School of the Americas–is, as author Christopher Hitchens says,
"hidden in plain sight." Not only does the U.S. military admit that we school
Latin American fighters in "counter-insurgency" tactics at the Georgia campus;
we practically boast about it. With 600 documented human rights abusers as
graduates, the School of the Americas is a terrifying exercise in imperialism,
but the brave and beautiful efforts to shut it down have thus far resulted in
only a pernicious PR spin: a new name. Even as the Western Hemisphere
Institute for Security Cooperation, it's clear the school continues its miserable
work. Ay, caramba. Warning: While dramatic and necessary, the images of
torture and violence can be hard to take.
Melissa Levine
SF Weekly, Nov. 5, 2003
. . . . . .
...'80s-style U.S. interference in Latin America is still alive and well.
Hidden in Plain Sight examines the infamous Fort Benning, Ga., training camp
where Latin military officials are taught techniques of combat and subversion.
These techniques apparently include civilian murder, rape, and torture, and a
remarkable number of "graduates" (as highly placed as Panama's General Noriega)
have ended up involved in atrocities. Founded in 1946 to address "a lack of
democracy throughout Central and Southern America," the U.S. Army School of
the Americas closed after much public outcry in 2000. A few months later it
reopened with a name change--same location, same curriculum.
Dennis Harvey
San Francisco Bay Guardian, Nov. 5, 2003
. . . . . .
A sobering exposé of the U.S. Army's School of the Americas, John Smihula's
documentary looks at all sides of the issue, but gradually builds a case
against what appears to be a taxpayer-funded training ground for military terrorists.
According to many of Smihula's subjects, hundreds of Latin American
soldiers and dictators have learned their torture techniques in Fort Benning, Ga.–at our expense.
Though Army officials vigorously defend the school, after watching so
many grim interviews with victims of the school's alumni, agreeing with Smihula's
skepticism is finally unavoidable.
Elizabeth Weltzman
New York Daily News, Nov. 7, 2003
. . . . . .
If you’re one of those Americans who can’t find enough reasons to be pissed
off at our government, here’s another one for ya.
John H. Smihula’s “Hidden in Plain Sight” attempts to reveal the School of
the Americas at Fort Benning in Georgia as a training camp for assassins in
Latin America, including major death squad leaders and dictator Manuel Noriega.
Smihula presents a strong case here for the evil doings within the School of
the Americas as we hear from people who have been brutalized by soldiers trained
at the school. We also hear from the school’s many detractors and even the
U.S. military who support the school and swear up and down that the institution
has been set up to keep the peace in Latin America, but every time these
people open their mouths, they’re just sticking their foot in even deeper.
"Hidden in Plain Sight" is composed mostly of talking head interviews with
plenty of actual human slaughter footage from other parts of the world
accompanying them to drive home the urgency of this story even deeper. This film is
designed to turn your stomach and make you feel ashamed of your fellow man.
by Eric Campos
filmthreat.com, Nov. 3, 2003
. . . . . .
If you want to educate and organize opposition
to U.S. intervention in Latin America and elsewhere,
get a copy of Hidden in Plain Sight.
Lance Selfa
from Socialist Worker
May 9, 2003
GO TO ARTICLE
