United States of America: Activities of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and/or its Counterintelligence Program (COINTELPRO), in the African-American community (1998 - July 1999)

Several different specialists, who study the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and/or "political repression" in the United States, said that it is very difficult to obtain information on current FBI intelligence activities. All stated that it is difficult to obtain information from the FBI itself and therefore it is difficult to obtain information on what, or who, the FBI is investigating. As such, some of the information in this Response is speculative in nature, although it is based on the informed opinion of the following specialists: a researcher and writer on political repression in the United States who has been published in such periodicals as Covert Action Quarterly, The Nation, and a range of African-American newspapers, who is also the Director of the Anti-Repression Resource Team in State College, Pennsylvania (2 July 1999); the Washington D.C. representative of the National Committee Against Repressive Legislation, which grew out of the National Committee to Abolish the House Un-American Activities Committee (2 July 1999); the co-founder, co-Director and Director of Research for Covert Action Quarterly (30 June 1999); a Senior Analyst with Political Research Associates in Somerville, Maine which conducts research into the "ideology and tactics of the political 'right' in the United States; and, a Professor of History at Marquette University in Milwaukee, who has published a wide range of works on the subject of the FBI (16 June 1999).

In terms of obtaining information about current FBI activities, the Professor of History stated that the FBI does not, and is not legally required under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, to release any information pertaining to "ongoing investigations" (16 June 1999). He stated that information on COINTELPRO, or the Counterintelligence Program, came out as a result of congressional hearings and that the program was formally terminated in 1971 "because it was compromised."

The Washington D.C. representative of the National Committee Against Repressive Legislation stated that, as a rule, information on FBI activities does not come out until after the fact and, for the most part, information about the organization's past activities has originated in "leaks" (2 July 1999). As such, she suggested that it is difficult to evaluate the nature of the FBI's current investigations. However, she pointed to what she referred to as "disturbing events." According to her, the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1996 gave the FBI more money and more authority to do "First Amendment investigations," i.e., to look into people, or groups, on the basis of their political beliefs. She said that the definition of "terrorism" arising out of this Act is broad, ranging from groups involved in the making of nuclear bombs to individuals slashing the tires of police vehicles. As a result, she said that "under the current law the FBI could engage in similar activities as in the past [monitoring groups/individuals for their political beliefs], without exceeding its authority." In support of this, she explained that an earlier prohibition introduced in 1994 which forbade the FBI from investigating groups/individuals simply on the basis of their First Amendment activities, was removed through the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1996. Furthermore, she stated that many United States local police forces had indicated that they would not investigate groups/individuals on the basis of their First Amendment activities, but that many have been "backing off" from these commitments as a result of FBI pressure.

In response to a question as to whether the FBI is currently operating within the African-American community, and still using tactics identified with COINTELPRO, the Director of the Anti-Repression Resource Team stated that "it is difficult to prove anything" (2 July 1999). However, he stated that "what is provable is that the FBI continues to withhold information on what it was doing at the time of COINTELPRO" and referred to recent court decisions that have upheld the FBI's right to withhold information. He stated that this has meant that persons who were convicted of crimes during the time of COINTELPRO remain in prison, without access to the information that could clear them. He stated his belief in the continued existence of an FBI counterintelligence program similar in nature to COINTELPRO, despite the official termination of the FBI program by that name. The Director stated that the activities of that unnamed program "may not be as blatant" as those conducted during COINTELPRO, "because there are no large scale political movements now," but he believes the FBI would "use the strategies again if need be."

The Professor of History stated that in the mid-1970s there were suggestions that the FBI was continuing to "unofficially use" the tactics of COINTELPRO, which were "to disrupt, harass, or discredit the targeted groups" and included the incitement of violence within these groups by FBI agents (16 June 1999). However, he stated that he suspects that the FBI would no longer use the "dirty tricks" associated with COINTELPRO. In the Professor's opinion, in its current focus on "terrorism" the FBI would more likely be using "straight monitoring," that "extra-legal harassment would not likely be going on" and that the FBI is "a lot more cautious and restrained."

This opinion was supported by a Senior Analyst with Political Research Associates in Somerville, Maine which conducts research into the "ideology and tactics of the political 'right' in the United States." He stated during a 16 June 1999 telephone interview that while the FBI has a "history of questionable conduct," there were "substantial house-cleanings in the 1970s" and that, furthermore, the "riot-act was read to them after Waco" and that a subsequent change in behaviour could be seen in the organization's more restrained handling of the incident involving the Montana Freemen. He stated that in his opinion the present is "a period of less lawlessness in federal law enforcement."

In contrast to these opinions, the Director of Research at Covert Action Quarterly said that he thought that COINTELPRO, as a counterintelligence program of the FBI, was now operating under a different name. He suggested that the name could be COMTEL, which could represent "Communications Intelligence" (30 June 1999). A recent request by Covert Action Quarterly, under the Freedom of Information Act, for information on COMTEL, received a reply from the FBI that neither confirmed, nor denied, the existence of COMTEL. The Director of Research stated that he felt it significant that the FBI did not in fact deny the existence of this program. He also referred to the broadening of scope of the FBI that was a result of the approval in 1996 of the Anti-Terrorism legislation. As a result of the FBI's current focus on terrorism "much of what wasn't justified has now become so."

Within this context of limited information on the FBI's current investigations, several sources gave opinions as to FBI's activities in the African-American community. The Director of the Anti-Repression Resource Team stated that the African-American community's current principal focus is on the brutality of local police force members and not on the FBI (2 July 1999). In terms of FBI activity, he claimed that "they are better able to hide" their actions. However, he did recount a recent incident when an African-American newspaper, which had published critical stories on the FBI and COINTELPRO, was bombed. The Director related that the community was concerned that the FBI would not be able to impartially investigate the incident and that they passed on these concerns to the Community Relations Service of the Department of Justice, which he described as a form of ombudsman for the FBI. He stated that the FBI did subsequently arrest a suspect in the case, but described the arrest as a result of the national pressure applied through the Community Relations Service.

The Director of Research at Covert Action Quarterly, while not providing details, stated that there are indications of FBI activity in the African-American community that are "strikingly similar to COINTELPRO" and said that it would be "naive to think otherwise." He stated his belief that the FBI is looking at more than just "terrorist" groups, including "political opponents." He referred to the expanded infiltration of groups — including Central America issue groups [see reference to CISPES below] and African-American groups — as an outcome of a 1981 Executive Order of President Reagan. He stated that, as far as he knows, this order is still in effect and that its "implementing guidelines" remain secret.

The Washington D.C. Representative of the National Committee Against Repressive Legislation thought that the current activities of the FBI in the African-American community, are not as widespread as its activities in the Arab community. For instance, she stated that the questioning of neighbours by the FBI, on the activities of other community members, is something that does occur in the Arab community but not in the African-American community. She stated that as citizens, members of the African-American community would be much less tolerant of the FBI asking questions in their neighbourhoods. This lack of tolerance is a result of "sensitivity in the community" to past FBI operations.

When asked if the FBI is still engaged in activities similar to those used against the Black Panthers in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the representative replied that many members of the African-American community have been arrested and are now in jail on the basis of drug charges. While not claiming that these arrests were because of FBI activities, she did note that they have resulted in the removal from society of persons who might have become "political activists." Additionally, the representative noted that within the African-American community there is a perception that American support to the contras, and their simultaneous involvement in drug smuggling, in effect brought in the expansion of crack cocaine addictions in African-American neighbourhoods.

During a 2 July 1999 telephone interview, the Director of the Washington D.C. Bureau, Public Policy Division, of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), stated that there are some members of the African-American community who believe the FBI still engages in activities in the community similar to those used under the name of COINTELPRO. However, he said that there is not much "definitive evidence" of this. He related this change to the administration of President Clinton stating that the FBI's relations with the African-American community have been much better than during that of President Bush. He referred to the positive impact of important justice-related political appointments, as well as a series of meetings with FBI officials on hate crimes, and said that things have changed "significantly" even though "much change is still needed." As such, relations between FBI agents and members of the African-American communities more commonly involve community members reporting incidents of "hate crime" to FBI officials and asking for protection. He stated that the FBI "has so far been pretty good" in this respect. He also described the holding of a Hate Crimes Conference, which the Attorney General attended, and then a follow-up conference where FBI agents and African-Americans engaged in a series of workshops on hate crimes.

During an 18 March 1999 interview, a national representative of the Black Muslim Movement, Quanell X, made unsubstantiated allegations regarding "the FBI or someone involved in the National Security Agency" (Fox News Network). He claimed that the leader of the Nation of Islam, Louis Farrakhan, was seriously ill as the result of an FBI COINTELPRO overseas operation in which he was poisoned just prior to returning to the United States from Libya (ibid.).

On 29 April 1998, The Jacksonville Free Press reported that in 1997 two Representatives of Congress had "asked the House Judiciary Committee to hold hearings on the COINTELPRO program" but that their request had not been granted. Furthermore, the newspaper reported that the FBI did not "comment on whether the bureau would support hearings on COINTELPRO."

On 4 April 1998, Washington Afro-American reported that representatives of Washington's African-American community, had called for the current director of the FBI to apologize to the community for past COINTELPRO actions and to pledge that the tactics would not be used again.

In July 1997 the murder conviction of Black Panther Elmer "Geronimo" Pratt, allegedly a victim of the FBI's COINTELPRO, was overturned (IPS 5 March 1998; Los Angeles Times 31 Jan. 1998). The judge ruled that "prosecutors had wrongly withheld from Pratt's defense team evidence pointing to the extent to which a key prosecution witness … had been an informant for law enforcement" (ibid.). In January 1998, Los Angeles prosecutors entered an appeal of this decision which had released Pratt on bail. Pratt had been convicted in 1972 for the murder of a woman during a robbery attempt. Pratt had always claimed that he was at a Panther meeting in Oakland at the time of the Santa Monica murder (ibid.).

In his conclusion to his 1992 book on COINTELPRO, James Kirkpatrick Davis states: "it would seem that the COINTELPRO story should have ended in 1976. As we have seen, it has not necessarily ended" (1992, 181). He then states: "The machinery set up to monitor the FBI's domestic counterintelligence activities did not function properly in the [1980s] CISPES [Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador] case. An extensive investigation of citizens engaged in lawful political activity [that] lasted for at least two years" (ibid.). For additional information on COINTELPRO's activities within the African-American community, please see the attachments to USA19355.E of 25 January 1995 and USA19357.E of 19 January 1995.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

        Anti-Repression Resource Team, State College, Pennsylvania. 2 July 1999. Telephone interview with the Director.

Covert Action Quarterly [Washington, DC]. 30 June 1999. Telephone interview with the co-founder, co-Director and Director of Research.

Davis, James Kirkpatrick. 1992. Spying on America: The FBI's Domestic Counterintelligence Program. New York: Praeger Publishers.

Fox News Network. 18 March 1999. Sean Hannity and Alan Colmes. "Louis Farrakhan's Failing Health." (NEXIS)

The Jacksonville Free Press. 29 April 1998. "Black Panthers Seek Hearings." (Ethnic NewsWatch/NEXIS)

Inter Press Service (IPS). 5 March 1998. Farhan Haq. "Rights - U.S.: Campaign to Free Political Prisoners." (NEXIS)

Los Angeles Times. 31 January 1998. Edward J. Boyer. "D.A. Appeals Decision to Release Ex-Black Panther;…" (NEXIS)

Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 16 June 1999. Telephone interview with Professor of History.

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Washington, D.C. 2 July 1999. Telephone interview with the Director of the Washington Bureau, Public Policy Division.

National Committee Against Repressive Legislation, Washington, D.C. 2 July 1999. Telephone interview with the Washington Representative.

Political Research Associates, Somerville, Maine. 16 June 1999. Telephone interview with a Senior Analyst.

Washington Afro-American. 4 April 1998. Desiree Allen Graves. "Take Time to Remember: FBI…" (Ethnic NewsWatch/NEXIS)

Additional Sources Consulted

        Amnesty International. 1998. Amnesty International Report 1998.

Human Rights Watch (HRW). 1998. Human Rights Watch World Report 1999.Resource Centre. United States country file. April 1997 - June 1999.

_____. United States: Amnesty International country file. March 1998 - June 1999.

Electronic sources: IRB Databases, LEXIS/NEXIS, Internet, REFWORLD