.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

Born at the Crest of the Empire

Monday, August 29, 2005

But it is like Vietnam

We may argue as to whether Iraq is like Vietnam over there, but over here, it's looking more and more like it.

This is a horribly written article, but if you can get through the poor structure, you'll learn that through a FOIA, the ACLU has learned that the FBI has classified an antiwar group and affirmative action group neither with a history of violence as potentially "involved in terrorist activities". What this non-committal phrase means in practice is that members of these organizations are now subject to the terror laws, phone tapping, library checks, medical and financial records searches, and sneak and peek home searches. And, quite frankly, I don't think you have to be a member, simply to have been known to associate with terror suspects is usually sufficient.

"This document confirms our fears that federal and state counterterrorism officers have turned their attention to groups and individuals engaged in peaceful protest activities," said Ben Wizner, an ACLU staff attorney and counsel in a lawsuit seeking the release of additional FBI records. "When the FBI and local law enforcement identify affirmative action advocates as potential terrorists, every American has cause for concern."

The document released today is an FBI report labeled, "Domestic Terrorism Symposium," and describes a meeting that was intended to "keep the local, state and federal law enforcement agencies apprised of the activities of the various groups and individuals within the state of Michigan who are thought to be involved in terrorist activities."

Among the groups mentioned are Direct Action, an anti-war group, and BAMN (By Any Means Necessary), a national organization dedicated to defending affirmative action, integration, and other gains of the civil rights movement of the 1960s. The FBI acknowledges in the report that the Michigan State Police has information that BAMN has been peaceful in the past.

***These FOIA requests were only in realtion to Michigan, so there's no telling if this is two samples or two of thousands.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home