There’s a reason the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech, religion, expression, press and the right to assemble, is the first item on the Bill of Rights.

Freedom to communicate and inform is central and essential to the idea of free government — the type of government the U.S. hoped to create in Iraq upon entering the war in March 2003.

Counter to this ideal are the actions of the Pentagon in indefinitely detaining Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein since April 12 without charge. The Pentagon contends it detained Hussein, who won a Pulitzer Prize last year for news photography, because he had close ties to Iraqi insurgents.

Hussein is one of an estimated 14,000 people detained as suspected security threats by the U.S. military worldwide. Few are charged with a specific crime or given a chance before any court or tribunal to argue for their freedom.

Hussein’s detainment shows that not all these prisoners are terror threats, as the White House and Pentagon frequently argue. How can a journalist objectively cover any event without getting both sides of the story?

The U.S. has spent over $315 billion on the war in Iraq and lost 2,682 soldiers to date. Shouldn’t citizens have the right to know both sides of this war?

The Pentagon doesn’t want reporters covering both sides because it doesn’t want Americans to see the dire situation that Iraq is in. It’s much easier to spin the American public when pesky journalists trust government press releases.

Hussein is not alone. Americans need to fight back against this un-American policy. If the Pentagon and White House hope to liberate Iraqis by sacrificing the very principles that top our own Bill of Rights, then the war is not worth fighting.