[Peace-discuss] Fwd: Breaking News: FBI harassment in Midwest being generated by illegal red squad

[Alfred Kagan]

>Date: Wed, 28 Jul 2004 12:25:14 -0500
>From: Chuck0 <chuck at mutualaid.org>
>Organization: Infoshop News
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>CC: ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom List <alaoif at ala.org>,
>         south at lists.mutualaid.org, acc at lists.mutualaid.org
>Subject: [SRRTAC-L:14495] Breaking News: FBI harassment in Midwest 
>being generated by illegal
>  red squad
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>Breaking News: FBI harassment in Midwest being generated by illegal red
>squad
>
>July 28, 2004
>Infoshop News
>
>Kansas - Sources close to Infoshop News, who are investigating the
>recent outbreak of FBI harassment of anarchists in Denver, Lawrence,
>Topeka, Kansas City, Columbia, Fort Collins, Kirksville and St. Louis,
>report that the FBI investigations were most likely initiated by an
>illegal "red squad" operating in Lawrence, Kansas. FBI agents who have
>contacted anarchists have identified themselves as working with a Joint
>Terrorism Task Force. These task forces are centered on cooperation
>between local police departments and federal agencies including the FBI.
>The pattern of FBI harassment centers on Lawrence, Kansas, where there
>is mounting evidence that a local "red squad" is being run by the County
>Sheriff. Sources tell Infoshop News that this sheriff was trained at
>counter-terrorism facilities in Germany and fancies himself a crusader
>against dissent.
>
>The focus on Lawrence, KS anarchists fits a general pattern of
>harassment of dissenters in that community, which includes the arrest of
>anarchists at a protest of the Dole Center, and police harassment of the
>North American Anarchist Conference held in Lawrence in 2001.
>
>The harassment of anarchists in the region has generally involved
>harassment and intimidation of younger activists. It is clear that this
>ongoing harassment program is being conducted to scare younger activists
>from attending the protests at the DNC and RNC conventions, as well as
>the protests scheduled for the presidential debates in St. Louis in
>October. A COINTELPRO program is being conducted here in the Midwest,
>which aims to scare and divide activists. Activists and anarchists have
>refused to cooperate or answer questions; the general attitude being
>that activists won't let these scare tactics stop them from being
>involved in activism and dissent.


-- 


Al Kagan
African Studies Bibliographer and Professor of Library Administration
Africana Unit, Room 328
University of Illinois Library
1408 W. Gregory Drive
Urbana, IL 61801, USA

tel. 217-333-6519
fax. 217-333-2214
e-mail. akagan at uiuc.edu