Rock musicians are speaking out against the U.S. military’s use of music to harass terror suspects.

The military will often play the music for days and weeks as an audio assault on the senses. The Seattle Times explained the reasoning:

The tactic has been common in the U.S. war on terror, with forces systematically using loud music on hundreds of detainees in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay. Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, then the U.S. military commander in Iraq, authorized it on Sept. 14, 2003, “to create fear, disorient … and prolong capture shock.”

The music has included songs from AC/DC, Metallica, Eminem, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tupac Shakur, Bruce Springsteen, Britney Spears, Aerosmith and, most disturbing of all the theme song, “I Love You” from “Barney and Friends.” Imagine listening to that for days on end.

A campaign begun this week will feature moments of silence during concerts as a protest to the constant blasting of music into detainee cells.

The human rights organization, Reprieve, is conducting the campaign against music torture on the 60^th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights. Some of the musicians involved in the campaign are James Lavelle of UNKLE, Matthew Herbert, Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine, Massive Attack, The Magic Numbers, Elbow and Bill Bailey.