COINTELPRO

[refuse_resist]

COINTELPRO is an acronym for a series of FBI counterintelligence programs designed to neutralize political dissidents. Although covert operations have been employed throughout FBI history, the formal COINTELPRO's of 1956-1971 were broadly targeted against radical political organizations. In the early 1950s, the Communist Party was illegal in the United States. The Senate and House of Representatives each set up investigating committees to prosecute communists and publicly expose them. (The House Committee on Un-American Activities and the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee, led by Senator Joseph McCarthy). When a series of Supreme Court rulings in 1956 and 1957 challenged these committees and questioned the constitutionality of Smith Act prosecutions and Subversive Activities Control Board hearings, the FBI's response was COINTELPRO, a program designed to "neutralize" those who could no longer be prosecuted. Over the years, similar programs were created to neutralize civil rights, anti-war, and many other groups, all said to be "communist front organizations." As J. Edgar Hoover, longtime Director of the FBI, put it

"The forces which are most anxious to weaken our internal security are not always easy to identify. Communists have been trained in deceit and secretly work toward the day when they hope to replace our American way of life with a Communist dictatorship. They utilize cleverly camouflaged movements, such as peace groups and civil rights groups to achieve their sinister purposes. While they as individuals are difficult to identify, the Communist party line is clear. Its first concern is the advancement of Soviet Russia and the godless Communist cause. It is important to learn to know the enemies of the American way of life."
COINTELPRO (http://www.icdc.com/~paulwolf/cointelpro/cointel.htm)

Also read - Wikipedia article on COINTELPRO (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COINTELPRO)

U.S. Domestic Covert Operations (http://mediafilter.org/MFF/USDCO.idx.html)

[Hampton]

Good book on the subject:

http://www.southendpress.org/images/cointelpro2.gif

And don't believe it when they tell you that it ended in the 70s. It has never ended, the policy of disrupting domestic groups is still alive and well.

[The Garbage Disposal Unit]

Indeed! Under the USAPATRIOT Act, government agencies again have the freedom to take disturbing action against activists, and other potential security threats. While not taking the same forms it did during the fifties/sixties/seventies, the American gov't has initiated campaigns of harassment against, in particular, anarchists, peace activists, and Muslims. Grand juries? Detainment without charge or trial? Secret evidence? In some cases, alleged torture? You bet!

[bunk]

I thought the black panthers were a bit stupid to believe that the letters being circulated around the party were real; supposedely from Cleavers and newton. Damn those counter intelligence programmes tho!

[Hampton]

I don't think that they were stupid, maybe a little naive though. In that era it wasn't known that they government had established this program to kill off as mnay of them as possible. And at the time something like the Panthers had not been done before on that large of a scale, considering it covered both coasts and some other parts of the world. And with that many members there was bound to be some grivences within the party.

On the other hand I think a lot of people would have considered them to be paranoid if they thought every angry letter was writeen by the government. People started to call Huey that when in the late 70's he was kicking some of the older members out, olike Bobby Seale and David Hillard.

[SittingBull47]

I've yet to read that book. It's been on my list for a long time.
I encourage everyone to look up anything written by Ward Churchill. He's very extensive and he does great work in exposing such things.

[cubalibra]

COINTELPRO is also responsible for the jailing of America's political prisoner, Leonard Peltier, who has spent 30 years in prison for the crime of Native American tradition spoken with pride.

[Guerrilla22]

Hampton, one of the authors of that book, Ward Churchill is one my proffesors at the Unv. of Colorado, Glenn Morris, the leader of the American Indian Movement in the Denver area is also one of my proffesors. Morris, who is poly sci proffesor (Churchill teaches ethics) is the head of Leonard Peltier's defense team, he has a law degree from Harvard.

[Hampton]

That's pretty cool. Is he a good teacher?

[Saint-Just]

The site that was linked too says that COINTELPRO caused the factional dispute involving Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam.
http://www.icdc.com/~paulwolf/cointelpro/doc102.gif

[Guerrilla22]

Originally posted by [email protected] 23 2004, 08:47 PM
That's pretty cool. Is he a good teacher?
Yeah, he's a great teacher. He gets arrested every year in Denver for trying to stop the Coloumbus day parade.

[guerillablack]

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