COINTELPRO Was Spying and Agitating Targeted Americans
Stolen files from the FBI lead to this fascinating study of what happened. Uncovered was spying and agitating of US communities both blacks and whites, during the Vietnam War. This is a proven conspiracy, and debunks the idea that conspiracies started by the US government are not valid. Many are.
See also COINTELPRO on Wikipedia. Interesting reading:
According to attorney Brian Glick in his book War at Home, the FBI used four main methods during COINTELPRO:
- Infiltration: Agents and informers did not merely spy on political activists. Their main purpose was to discredit and disrupt. Their very presence served to undermine trust and scare off potential supporters. The FBI and police exploited this fear to smear genuine activists as agents.
- Psychological warfare: The FBI and police used myriad "dirty tricks" to undermine progressive movements. They planted false media stories and published bogus leaflets and other publications in the name of targeted groups. They forged correspondence, sent anonymous letters, and made anonymous telephone calls. They spread misinformation about meetings and events, set up pseudo movement groups run by government agents, and manipulated or strong-armed parents, employers, landlords, school officials and others to cause trouble for activists. They used bad-jacketing to create suspicion about targeted activists, sometimes with lethal consequences.
- Harassment via the legal system: The FBI and police abused the legal system to harass dissidents and make them appear to be criminals. Officers of the law gave perjured testimony and presented fabricated evidence as a pretext for false arrests and wrongful imprisonment. They discriminatorily enforced tax laws and other government regulations and used conspicuous surveillance, "investigative" interviews, and grand jury subpoenas in an effort to intimidate activists and silence their supporters.
- Illegal force: The FBI conspired with local police departments to threaten dissidents; to conduct illegal break-ins in order to search dissident homes; and to commit vandalism, assaults, beatings and assassinations. The object was to frighten or eliminate dissidents and disrupt their movements.
Geronimo Pratt's COINTELPRO illegal conviction for murder and subsequent release and monetary judgement against the government. Pratt died in 2011 from complications of high blood pressure after being confined illegally in prison for 27 years. This is just one of the many evil deeds that came from COINTELPRO.