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Walling

William English Walling (1877 – September 12, 1936) was an American author, journalist, and early 20th-century activist who co-founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909 and served as the first executive secretary of the National Women's Trade Union League (WTUL). Born into a prosperous family in Louisville, Kentucky—the son of physician Willoughby Walling and Rosalind English Walling, with ties to antebellum Southern heritage—he initially embraced socialism and labor reform, drawing from his studies at the University of Chicago under economists like Thorstein Veblen. Walling's activism gained prominence following his investigative reporting on the 1908 Springfield, Illinois, race riot, which he detailed in the article "Race War in the North," arguing for a revival of abolitionist principles to combat escalating racial violence in the North. This work catalyzed the NAACP's formation, where he collaborated with figures like and , positioning the organization as a biracial effort against and , though Walling later clashed with its leadership over ideological differences. His advocacy extended to women's labor organizing through the WTUL, emphasizing unionization amid industrial strife, and he authored influential texts like Socialism as It Is (1912), which surveyed global socialist movements with a pragmatic lens informed by his travels in and . Over time, Walling's views shifted markedly during World War I, leading him to support U.S. intervention and criticize Bolshevik communism, which alienated him from socialist circles and contributed to personal strains, including a 1911 breach-of-promise lawsuit and eventual divorce from fellow activist Anna Strunsky Walling. These evolutions—from radical reformer to anti-communist critic—highlighted tensions within progressive movements, as he prioritized empirical observation of revolutionary failures over ideological purity, influencing his later writings and lectures until his death in Amsterdam. Despite his foundational roles in civil rights and labor institutions, Walling's legacy remains underemphasized in mainstream narratives, partly due to his departure from leftist orthodoxy.

Technique and Procedure

Description of the Method

Walling is an enhanced interrogation technique employed by the (CIA) involving controlled physical impact against a constructed surface. The procedure requires the use of a flexible false designed to produce a loud upon impact, amplifying the psychological shock while minimizing the risk of serious injury. The detainee is positioned with their heels touching the , after which the interrogator grasps the individual—typically by a or similar restraint—pulls them forward, and then rapidly pushes them back so that their blades strike the . To mitigate potential , the detainee's head and neck are supported by a rolled or functioning as a during the motion. The flexible nature of the wall permits the detainee to rebound slightly, further reducing physical , though the auditory effect is intended to convey a sense of greater force than actually applied. This technique was among those detailed in CIA submissions to the Department of Justice's for authorization in interrogations of high-value al detainees, with up to 50 repetitions permitted in a single application under approved guidelines.

Physical and Psychological Components

Walling involves encircling the detainee's with a or , positioning them with heels against a flexible false constructed of , then pulling them forward and rapidly slamming them backward so that their blades strike the wall, while their head and are supported by a rolled towel or hood to prevent . The flexible wall design allows the detainee to rebound, minimizing the risk of direct physical such as concussions or fractures, with the primary physical being a jolt to the upper body accompanied by a loud banging . Despite these safeguards, instances of head and neck injuries have been reported among detainees subjected to walling, including severe in cases like that of , where medical testimony linked the technique to lasting neurological damage. Psychologically, walling aims to exploit the discrepancy between the minimal actual pain and the amplified auditory impact of the collision, creating an illusion of extreme that instills , disorientation, and a sense of helplessness in the detainee. The sudden, forceful motion and reverberating sound are intended to trigger a , heightening the detainee's of imminent severe harm or , thereby breaking down and encouraging without relying on prolonged physical . When combined with other enhanced techniques, walling contributes to cumulative psychological strain, potentially exacerbating conditions like anxiety, , and long-term , as evidenced by persistent issues in former detainees exposed to CIA programs.

Historical Development

Origins in U.S. Interrogation Practices

The walling technique emerged from the U.S. military's (SERE) training programs, which simulated adversary methods to prepare personnel for capture. Established in the aftermath of and formalized after the —where over 7,000 U.S. prisoners endured coercive tactics by North Korean and Chinese forces—SERE incorporated physical simulations such as rough manhandling and slamming trainees against walls using collars or clothing to replicate captor brutality without causing lasting harm. These elements were drawn from declassified accounts of communist interrogation practices, including isolation, threats, and controlled physical force to induce compliance or false confessions. By the , SERE had trained tens of thousands of service members annually, with the (JPRA) overseeing curriculum that emphasized resistance to such techniques. Post-September 11, 2001, U.S. agencies reversed SERE methods for offensive , adapting walling-like procedures for use on suspects. In late 2001, JPRA personnel briefed Department of Defense and CIA officials on applying SERE-derived tactics, including walling, to break detainee resistance. A December 2002 memorandum from proposed incorporating walling into standard operating procedures, describing it as pulling a hooded detainee by the collar and slamming them into a to create disorientation and noise. This drew immediate objections from FBI and Combined interrogators, who warned it violated and risked false intelligence. The technique's procedural details were codified in an August 1, 2002, memorandum, which specified constructing a flexible false approximately 18 inches from the detainee's heels, grasping the collar to draw them forward, and slamming their shoulder blades against it for psychological impact via and surprise, while minimizing through controlled motion. Verbal approval for walling and related methods came from John Ashcroft on July 24, 2002, for application against operatives. This adaptation reflected a shift from SERE's defensive training to proactive U.S. interrogation, amid internal debates over efficacy and legality, with proponents citing its role in simulating capture stress to accelerate .

Integration into CIA Enhanced Interrogation Techniques

Walling was proposed as part of the CIA's (EITs) in July 2002 by agency contractor Grayson Swigert, drawing from U.S. military (SERE) training methods adapted for detainee interrogation. This proposal came amid post-September 11, 2001, efforts to extract intelligence from high-value detainees, with walling listed among 12 techniques submitted for legal review to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and (NSC). The technique involved encircling the detainee's neck with a , pulling forward, and slamming against a —initially , later a constructed flexible false —to induce without severe , often combined with other measures like attention grasps and facial holds. On July 24, 2002, Attorney General verbally approved walling as one of 10 EITs during a meeting, following consultations that emphasized its psychological impact akin to physical threats. Formal integration occurred via the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) memorandum dated August 1, 2002, authored by , which analyzed walling's legality under U.S. anti- statutes, concluding it did not constitute torture when limited to controlled applications producing no lasting harm. The CIA implemented walling immediately thereafter, first applying it to on August 4, 2002, at a site, where interrogators used a rolled around his neck to repeatedly slam him against a in sessions lasting up to 24 hours alongside other EITs. CIA Director formalized walling's role in guidelines signed January 28, 2003, designating it among 12 enhanced techniques requiring Counterterrorism Center director approval for use, ensuring integration into standardized protocols for subsequent detainees like and Khalid Shaykh Mohammed. Usage persisted through 2004, with OLC reapprovals such as the May 10, 2005, memorandum under reaffirming its status within the EIT repertoire, though suspended post-2004 Abu Ghraib revelations and partially resumed for specific cases like Janat Gul in July 2004. A 2006 CIA efficiency review recommended retaining walling for its perceived coercive value, but the program ended without reinstatement following in 2009.

Implementation and Usage

Application in CIA Black Sites

Walling was implemented by the CIA in its network of black sites—covert detention facilities established post-September 11, 2001, in locations including Thailand (Detention Site Green), Poland, Afghanistan (Salt Pit), Romania, and Lithuania—as a foundational enhanced interrogation technique (EIT) for extracting intelligence from high-value terrorism suspects. These sites, operational primarily from 2002 to 2009, housed at least 119 detainees, with 39 confirmed to have undergone EITs, including walling, which was authorized via Office of Legal Counsel memos on August 1, 2002. The method was integrated into interrogation protocols to induce compliance through controlled physical force, often sequenced with other EITs like attention grasps and facial slaps, and applied in isolated cells equipped with specialized apparatus such as flexible false walls. The procedure in black sites entailed encircling the detainee's neck with a constructed from a rolled towel or similar flexible material, grasping it firmly, and forcefully propelling the individual backward against a plywood-sheathed affixed to a wooden frame, calibrated to generate a disorienting thud without structural injury. This setup, detailed in CIA guidelines submitted for legal review, emphasized psychological disruption via auditory impact and perceived interrogator dominance over bodily harm. sessions could involve multiple repetitions, sometimes exceeding 20 impacts per application, and were monitored by medical personnel to ensure detainee viability for continued . Initial deployment occurred at the site against , captured on March 28, 2002, and subjected to walling starting August 4, 2002, as the inaugural test of the full EIT regimen on a high-value detainee. Zubaydah's captivity drawings, declassified and analyzed, depict the collar-assisted slams, corroborating CIA logs of the technique's use alongside and positions during his 19-day isolation phase. Similarly, Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri endured walling in the same facility in late 2002, per declassified cables describing its role in breaking resistance prior to escalated measures. Beyond standard interrogations, walling served operational functions in black sites. In 2003, , detained since September 2002, was utilized at a site (likely Poland's Stare Kiejkut facility) as a demonstration subject, enduring roughly 50 walling applications—conducted while nude—over two weeks to certify incoming interrogators in the technique. Declassified records indicate such emphasized to replicate stress without permanent damage, reflecting the CIA's efforts across sites despite varying facility conditions. Usage tapered by 2007 amid internal reviews and external scrutiny, with black sites shuttered by 2009 under President Obama's executive order.

Notable Cases Involving Detainees

, captured on March 28, 2002, in , , was the first high-value detainee subjected to walling as part of the CIA's at a in beginning in August 2002. Walling involved interrogators grasping his collar and forcefully projecting him against a wall designed to produce a loud noise while minimizing physical injury, applied alongside other methods such as . CIA records indicate Zubaydah endured over 90 minutes of walling in a single session on August 4, 2002, resulting in no significant intelligence gains according to subsequent reviews. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, arrested on March 1, 2003, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, faced walling during interrogations at CIA black sites, including in Afghanistan and Poland, starting shortly after his capture. Declassified CIA operational cables describe multiple instances where Mohammed was slammed against a flexible false wall up to 10 times in sequence, combined with attention grabs and other stresses, as authorized under the August 1, 2002, legal memorandum. These sessions, part of a regimen that included 183 applications of waterboarding, were later critiqued in official assessments for yielding fabricated information rather than actionable intelligence. Ammar al-Baluchi, detained in , , on September 6, 2002, and transferred to CIA custody, was used as a for walling at a , enduring repeated slams against a wall while naked to demonstrate the technique's application to new interrogators. Declassified documents from his reveal that al-Baluchi, a relative of , was subjected to the method until all trainees achieved proficiency, with sessions documented as causing psychological distress but no lasting physical harm per CIA guidelines. This use extended into 2003, highlighting the technique's role in operational beyond initial high-value interrogations. Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, captured on November 21, 2002, in the , experienced walling at the CIA's "" in and later facilities, where interrogators applied the collar-grab-and-slam method in combination with mock executions and other enhanced techniques. CIA cables from December 2002 detail at least five walling applications in a single session, intended to induce compliance but resulting in compliance driven by fear rather than truthful disclosures, as corroborated by declassified records. Nashiri's treatment contributed to broader program evaluations questioning the technique's reliability.

Effectiveness and Empirical Evidence

Claims of Intelligence Yields

The regarded walling as one of the most effective , asserting that it physically exhausted detainees, induced uncertainty about potential further applications, and instilled dread to compel cooperation and disclosure of withheld information. A 2005 memorandum from the Department of Justice's , relying on CIA assessments, noted that walling was applied to 28 of 94 detainees in CIA custody and yielded results as early as the first day of use in cases like that of Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, contributing to intelligence that CIA officials claimed prevented attacks. Psychologists James Mitchell and John Bruce Jessen, who designed the CIA's interrogation protocols, described walling in depositions as highly effective for inducing compliance without long-term injury, emphasizing its role in rapidly escalating pressure on resistant high-value detainees to reveal operational details. In the CIA's 2013 response to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's review, agency officials maintained that the overall detention and interrogation program—including walling alongside other techniques like sleep deprivation—produced unique actionable intelligence from detainees such as Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Abu Zubaydah, which facilitated arrests (e.g., Jose Padilla and the Paracha brothers), disrupted plots targeting sites like Heathrow Airport and Canary Wharf, and advanced leads toward Osama bin Laden's courier network. The CIA cited 20 specific case studies in this response, arguing that such yields enhanced strategic understanding of al-Qa'ida operations and saved lives, though individual contributions from walling were not isolated in declassified accounts.

Critiques and Counter-Evidence

The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's 2014 , based on over six million pages of CIA documents, concluded that —including walling—yielded no unique actionable intelligence that could not have been obtained through standard methods, and often produced fabricated information from detainees desperate to end the procedures. For instance, the report examined CIA claims that walling and related techniques elicited critical details from high-value detainees like , but found such information was either already known from prior interrogations without coercion or derived from non-EIT sources, with walling contributing only to compliance rather than truthful disclosure. Neuroscientific analyses further undermine walling's efficacy, arguing that the technique's abrupt physical jolt and auditory trigger acute responses that impair hippocampal function and retrieval, leading interrogators to receive unreliable or invented narratives rather than accurate . O'Mara, in reviewing declassified CIA protocols, notes that walling, as a form of controlled collision inducing fear of severe injury, elevates levels and disrupts activity, which governs executive control and truth-telling, thereby increasing false confessions without enhancing veracity. Empirical studies on coercive methods corroborate this, showing that physical like walling fosters short-term submission but erodes long-term , as detainees withhold verifiable details to avoid repetition of the . Counter-evidence from alternative paradigms highlights walling's comparative ineffectiveness; FBI behavioral analysts, employing rapport-based approaches on the same detainees, extracted more precise without physical , as documented in case reviews where EITs like walling delayed rather than accelerated information flow. The report further reveals internal CIA assessments acknowledging that walling's psychological disorientation often prompted detainees to fabricate plots or affiliations, such as unsubstantiated claims of imminent attacks, which were later debunked and diverted resources from genuine leads. These findings align with broader meta-analyses of science, which find no causal link between walling-style techniques and reliable yields, attributing any perceived successes to in CIA reporting.

Controversies and Ethical Debates

Classification as Torture

The U.S. Department of Justice's (OLC) in its August 2002 memorandum assessed walling—defined as grasping a detainee by the collar, lifting slightly, and forcefully projecting them backward into a flexible false wall—as not rising to the level of under 18 U.S.C. §§ 2340-2340A, which prohibits acts intentionally inflicting severe physical or mental pain or suffering. The OLC reasoned that walling, when conducted with a rolled over the detainee's face to muffle sound and prevent visual cues, was calibrated to induce disorientation and fear mimicking capture without causing prolonged injury, such as lacerations or fractures, and thus fell short of the statutory threshold akin to organ failure or death. Critics, including the 2014 U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence report, challenged this assessment, documenting that CIA representations of walling and other (EITs) understated their brutality and potential for harm, with at least 119 detainees subjected to the program and many experiencing unintended physical injuries like broken bones or hemorrhaging when techniques were combined or escalated. The report highlighted walling's role in sessions causing acute distress, such as on in August 2002, where it was applied repeatedly alongside stress positions and , contributing to a coercive environment the committee described as yielding unreliable intelligence while violating ethical norms, though it stopped short of a blanket legal ruling on individual techniques. Under international law, the (ratified by the U.S. in 1994) defines as intentional infliction of severe pain or suffering for purposes like obtaining information, a standard human rights groups like argue walling meets due to its deliberate use of physical force to break resistance, often resulting in bruising, neck strain, and psychological terror, as evidenced by detainee accounts of repeated slams inducing and disorientation. Medical analyses, including those in the New England Journal of Medicine, note that while walling alone rarely caused documented long-term physical damage in CIA-monitored cases, its integration into prolonged interrogations exacerbated cumulative trauma, with physicians sometimes monitoring but not preventing escalation, raising complicity concerns. Defenders of the technique, including former CIA contractors, maintain it avoided the severity of historical tortures like those in Soviet gulags, emphasizing empirical monitoring showed no fatalities or permanent disabilities attributable solely to walling, and arguing post-hoc classifications ignore context-specific legal authorizations under the Authorization for Use of Military Force. Nonetheless, subsequent U.S. policy shifts, such as the 2009 Obama administration banning EITs, implicitly rejected walling's compatibility with anti- prohibitions, aligning with assessments from bodies like the International Committee of the Red Cross that deemed the full CIA program tantamount to .

Legal and International Law Perspectives

In the United States, the legality of walling as an enhanced interrogation technique was initially assessed by the Department of Justice's (OLC) in a series of memos issued in 2002 and 2005. The August 1, 2002, memorandum, prepared for the CIA, described walling as a procedure where a detainee's is used to them against a flexible false wall designed to produce a loud noise for psychological impact while minimizing physical injury, such as or concussions. The OLC concluded that walling did not constitute under 18 U.S.C. §§ 2340-2340A, as it was unlikely to cause "severe physical pain or suffering" equivalent to that associated with serious injury, organ failure, or death, emphasizing the technique's controlled application and lack of intent to inflict prolonged harm. Subsequent OLC analyses in May 2005 reaffirmed this view, applying similar reasoning to combinations of techniques including walling, while asserting compliance with U.S. obligations under the UN (CAT) per the U.S. reservation limiting torture to extreme pain levels. These authorizations faced reversal under the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, which prohibited "cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment" of detainees regardless of status or location, incorporating interpretations of by the U.S. courts. The Supreme Court's ruling in (2006) further held that Common Article 3 of the applied to detainees, prohibiting violence to life and person, including cruel treatment and outrages upon personal dignity, though it did not specifically address walling. In 2009, the Obama administration withdrew the key OLC memos, stating they did not reflect the best interpretation of U.S. law and undermined rule-of-law principles, leading to revised CIA guidelines restricting techniques to those in the Field Manual. No U.S. prosecutions have resulted from walling specifically, with investigations like the Justice Department's 2012 review closing without charges due to insufficient evidence of unauthorized acts or good-faith reliance on OLC guidance. Under international law, walling has been widely critiqued as violating prohibitions on torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment (CIDT). The U.S. is bound by CAT, ratified in 1994 with reservations, which defines torture as intentional infliction of severe pain or suffering for purposes like obtaining information; bodies such as the UN Committee Against Torture have repeatedly urged the U.S. to investigate and prosecute enhanced techniques, including those akin to walling, as incompatible with CAT Articles 1 and 16, citing reports of physical and psychological harm like neck injuries and disorientation. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in confidential 2007 reports on CIA practices, classified walling among techniques amounting to torture under international humanitarian law, though the U.S. disputed ICRC findings as non-binding. Regarding the Geneva Conventions, Common Article 3 bans humiliating and degrading treatment in non-international armed conflicts, a standard applied to CIA detainees post-Hamdan; legal analyses, including those from the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (2014), argue walling breaches this by combining physical force with psychological coercion, potentially rising to grave breaches under Additional Protocol I if detainees qualify as protected persons. However, the U.S. maintained that high-value al Qaeda operatives were "unlawful enemy combatants" not entitled to full Geneva protections, a position contested by international tribunals like the European Court of Human Rights in rendition cases involving CIA methods.

Impact and Legacy

Influence on U.S. Policy and Reforms

The authorization of as part of the CIA's (EITs) in August 2002, via memos determining it did not constitute , exemplified the expansion of methods that later faced and reversal. These memos, drafted under the Bush administration, permitted walling—slamming a detainee against a flexible false wall while hooded with a to simulate execution—alongside other EITs, influencing CIA operational guidelines until their . On January 22, 2009, President Obama issued Executive Order 13491, which explicitly revoked prior interpretations allowing EITs, including walling, and mandated adherence to the Army Field Manual for interrogations, emphasizing rapport-based methods over coercive ones. This order directed the closure of CIA detention facilities and the creation of a Special Task Force on Interrogation and Transfer Policies, which in August 2009 recommended limiting techniques to those proven effective without coercion, citing empirical reviews of intelligence yields. The reforms shifted U.S. policy toward non-adversarial approaches, establishing the (HIG) to centralize FBI-led, science-informed interrogations devoid of physical duress. The Senate Select Committee on report further catalyzed policy reinforcement by documenting walling's application in over 100 instances across , asserting it yielded no unique while causing unintended injuries like and head , though the CIA contested these findings as overstated and methodologically flawed. Democratic-majority led, the report—despite Republican boycotts and CIA rebuttals highlighting dissenting internal assessments—bolstered , including the 2015 National Defense Authorization Act's codification of the EO 13491 limits and prohibitions on EITs for military and personnel. These changes entrenched a legal framework prioritizing compliance, reducing reliance on techniques like walling amid evidence of their limited causal in eliciting reliable information. Subsequent administrations, including Trump's 2017 affirming the Army Field Manual, maintained the bans, though internal debates persisted on without reinstating physical methods.

Broader Receptions and Viewpoints

Public opinion in the United States regarding the CIA's , including walling, has shown significant partisan divides and fluctuations tied to contexts. A 2014 Pew Research Center poll conducted after the release of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence report found that 51% of Americans viewed the CIA's interrogation methods as justified, with 59% of Republicans in support compared to 31% of Democrats. This support was attributed by analysts to perceptions of the techniques' role in preventing attacks, though critics argued it reflected short-term fears rather than ethical deliberation. Earlier surveys from 2001 to 2009 indicated majority backing among Americans when assured of gains, but opposition grew as details emerged, with some studies noting a shift toward viewing such methods as counterproductive to long-term . Among intelligence professionals and former officials, defenses of walling and similar techniques emphasize their utility in rapidly inducing compliance without permanent harm. John Rizzo, former chief legal officer of the CIA, described enhanced interrogations as "necessary and effective" for extracting actionable intelligence from high-value detainees resistant to standard rapport-building, arguing that walling's controlled physical shock disrupted evasion tactics. Proponents, including contractors James Mitchell and who designed the program, contended that techniques like walling— involving slamming a detainee against a padded false wall—created psychological pressure mimicking capture stress, yielding information on networks when combined with other stressors. However, these claims have faced skepticism from interrogation experts, who cite empirical reviews showing that coercive methods often produce unreliable confessions due to compliance-driven fabrications rather than truthful disclosures. Internationally, walling and associated CIA practices have elicited widespread condemnation from organizations and foreign governments, framing them as violations of universal prohibitions against cruel treatment. highlighted European states' complicity in hosting black sites where walling occurred, arguing it contributed to a global erosion of torture bans under the UN Convention Against Torture. documented detainee accounts of walling's disorienting effects, leading to calls for accountability in international courts, with inquiries in 2007 and 2014 labeling the techniques as systematic abuse incompatible with democratic values. These reactions underscore a causal view that such methods damage U.S. alliances and fuel , though some allied intelligence services privately acknowledged parallels in their own adaptations.