ORGANIZATIONS
St. Louis Instead of War Coalition is a group, made up of approximately a dozen local organizations, including specifically, the Catholic Action Network, the Center for Theology & Social Analysis, the Peace Economy Project, Alternatives to Military Service, the St. Louis chapter of Women in Black, the St. Louis Chapter of Labor Against War, and the Human Rights Action Service. These groups are dedicated to enhancing public awareness about the War in Iraq, the policies that led to that War, the reasons which have not been borne out, and the number of casualties in the War. The efforts of these groups are aimed to apply pressure on the government to end the War. The organization serves as a voice of dissent in the St. Louis area and holds weekly meetings, rallies and marches. Members of the group have observed a consistent pattern of surveillance by unknown authorities who they believe to be affiliated with the government. The organization is very concerned that its staff and organization are being unjustly targeted by the St. Louis JTTF. Its webmaster reports that the most frequent visitor to its website comes from an Internet address associated with the St. Louis Police Department, which visits the site almost daily.
The St. Louis chapter of Women in Black is a network of like-minded individuals which holds monthly vigils to protest war, the Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza strip, rape as a tool of war, ethnic cleansing and human rights abuses all over the world. Members of the St. Louis, Missouri chapter report a major increase in law enforcement presence at group events and protests since 2001. The organization is very concerned that its staff and organization are being unjustly targeted by the FBI St. Louis Joint Terrorism Task Force.
Alliance for Democracy is a political organization with chapters throughout the country. The organization focuses on workers’ rights and corporate accountability and stands against corporate abuses of the environment and their employees. The St. Louis chapter has several members who believe they may be monitored for their political beliefs and protest activities. The organization has been audited by the IRS and was engaged in appeals over an alleged tax dispute for several months. The organization is very concerned that its staff and organization are being unjustly targeted by the FBI's St. Louis Joint Terrorism Task Force.
Mid-Missouri Peace Works is a non-profit organization based in Columbia, Missouri. It engages in education and advocacy around issues of peace, social justice and sustainability. The organization, formerly constituted as the Columbia Nuclear Weapons Freeze Campaign, coordinates public events, protests and demonstrations, particularly opposing the War in Iraq. Since 9/11, the organization has sponsored over 180 demonstrations opposing the administration's war policy, including a recent demonstration commemorating the second anniversary of the War in Iraq that attracted hundreds of attendees. The organization has also coordinated counter-demonstrations during visits to Columbia by President Bush, John Ashcroft and Dick Cheney. Organizers believe they may be under surveillance because of their outspoken and controversial advocacy overtly opposing government policy.
Human Rights Action Service is an organization of human rights activists who meet to support victims of human rights abuse using the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a barometer. They engage in letter-writing, non-violent direct action (e.g., demonstrations) and consumer boycotts of companies and corporate products. Recent examples of their activism include a boycott of chocolate companies which use child labor, anti-sweatshop demonstrations in front of Target, and a demonstration at a Boeing Missile Facility for manufacturing weapons. The group has also demonstrated against the War in Iraq. Since 9/11, the group has noticed increased police presence at its events, even actions that were not announced publicly beforehand. The organization is very concerned that its staff and organization are being unjustly targeted by the FBI St. Louis Joint Terrorism Task Force.
Bolozone is a loosely-knit group of activists who identify as anarchists dedicated to social justice issues. Specifically, they are dedicated to making fundamental changes in American society by opposing environmental degradation, domination of people and excessive corporate power. Many of these activists were involved in planning protests of the World Agricultural Forum in St. Louis in 2003 and involved in the planning of a concurrent counter-conference entitled Biodevastation 7. Bolozone members report that they noticed police cars parked around their shared home at 3309 Illinois Ave, St. Louis, where some of the protesters were staying. For approximately one week prior to the May 18, 2003 scheduled protest, police had the property at 3309 Illinois under overt surveillance. Several report being followed and/or stopped as they left the home for the protest activities. On May 16, 2003, St. Louis Police conducted a warrantless raid of the home, arrested residents and visitors in the home, downloaded information from computers in the house, and confiscated numerous personal items, including diaries, photo albums, Palm Pilots, address books and other identifying information about the group, the protesters, and others with whom they associate. While the raid was conducted ostensibly as part of a building inspection / condemnation, the police are still holding as “evidence” some of the personal property including journals, diaries, address books and Palm Pilots.
Gateway Green Alliance is an organization dedicated to making fundamental changes in American society related to environmental and social justice issues. The group addresses the public through weekly educational programs, produces newsletters, and manages a website. In May 2003, the Alliance sponsored a conference entitled Biodevastation 7 at Forest Park Community College as part of counter-demonstration activities surrounding the World Agricultural Forum being held at the same time in St. Louis. During that time, the St. Louis Police Department conducted warrantless searches at several homes where Biodevastation conference attendees were staying. Members also noticed unmarked police cars parked around the homes and on the streets where these homes were located in the days surrounding the conference and protest of the World Agricultural Forum. Several members report being followed by authorities, and several report being stopped and/or arrested by police as they left these buildings. A group of bicyclists was arrested without cause in a public park on May 16, 2003 as they were riding to participate in the Biodevastation 7 Conference. The police action significantly and adversely affected the conference. Some speakers were detained and unable to participate. The press attention to the conference moved from covering the substance of the conference, to discussions of the police action and unfounded assertions that the participants were terrorists. The organization is very concerned that its staff and organization are being unjustly targeted by the FBI St. Louis Joint Terrorism Task Force. The organization also believes that JTTF agents may be infiltrating the group, noting three or four attendees of organizational meetings who have behaved increasingly suspiciously and disruptively since the May 2003 conference.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is a civil rights advocacy organization which protects and advocates for the rights of Muslims in the US. It's mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower Muslims and build coalitions through the media, lobbying, education and advocacy. Several CAIR members in the St. Louis area have been questioned by FBI agents since 9/11. CAIR's attorney reports that he has received calls from CAIR members who have been approached for questioning by members of the JTTF.
Veterans for Peace is a national organization headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, which works to bring about an end to war, being particularly active in opposing U.S. policy on the War in Iraq. The organization, which has nearly 100 active chapters nationwide, has taken an active role in opposing U.S. occupation, and has called for the resignation of President Bush. Delegates from the organization have traveled to Iraq as peace monitors and advocates. The organization has been prominently featured in national protests of the War. Veterans for Peace has noticed increased police presence at its events and rallies nationwide, including in Missouri, and believes that the FBI may have a file on the organization because of its outspoken criticism of the administration and opposition to the War.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri (“ACLU-EM”) is a state affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union (“ACLU”), a national organization that works to protect civil rights and civil liberties. As the leading defender of freedom, equality, privacy, and due process rights in the United States, the ACLU has challenged the United States government’s broad targeting and surveillance of innocent people as part of the war on terrorism, the government’s crackdown on criticism and dissent, the secret and unchecked surveillance powers of the USA PATRIOT Act and the excessive restriction of government information available through the Freedom of Information Act. ACLU-EM has challenged the unfair questioning and targeting of immigrants, the unfair detention and treatment of people arrested in the U.S. as part of the war on terrorism, and the unlawful detention and abuse of prisoners held by the U.S. government in detention facilities overseas.
In particular, ACLU-EM has provided direct representation to individuals and organizations targeted by the FBI and state and local police for exercising their First Amendment right to criticize the government, including people who participated in numerous rallies and marches to protest the War in Iraq, and who were excluded from meaningful participation at public presidential speeches. ACLU-EM advocates have also used litigation, lobbying, and public education to limit oppressive FBI and state and local police monitoring, interrogation, and arrest of people at public rallies, marches, and meetings.
ACLU-EM has provided direct legal representation in several cases representing persons arrested when attempting to protest government policy after 9/11. ACLU-EM is also providing direct legal representation to protesters associated with Bolozone and Gateway Green Alliance who were under surveillance, arrested and subject to a raid of their home based on their participation in a protest of the World Agricultural Forum in St. Louis in 2003. ACLU-EM staff noticed an obvious presence of numerous plain-clothes and uniformed officers circling a pavilion in Tower Grove Park in St. Louis while ACLU-EM staff conducted a “Know Your Rights” workshop for protesters on May 18, 2003, the morning of the scheduled protest. The ACLU-EM's Legal Director believes she was photographed by authorities while she was conducting this training. In 2004, ACLU-EM provided direct representation to three young men from Kirksville, Missouri who were questioned by the JTTF about their planned protest activities, put under overt surveillance and ultimately subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury based on these protest activities. During this case, the ACLU-EM’s clients were followed to the St. Louis office when they came to meet with legal staff, and ACLU-EM staff observed that several cars remained outside the office with agents watching the office building during the duration of the client meeting. The story of this case received national attention and was made public in an August 2004 New York Times story. Immediately following an article on the case and an editorial condemning the FBI's actions towards the three men in the local St. Louis Post-Dispatch newspaper, staff of the ACLU-EM noticed an increased police presence around its St. Louis office, and at least one staff member reports being trailed by police after leaving the office. Police also ran the license plates of all the cars parked at private, permit-only parking spots owned by the ACLU-EM and reserved for ACLU staff, and towed the Legal Director's car.
ACLU-EM attorneys have also held talks and workshops at local mosques, represented individuals interrogated by the FBI as part of its “voluntary” interviews and special registration programs for Muslims and people of Arab and South Asian descent, and had legal representatives in the federal building in St. Louis, Missouri providing information to registrants on their rights during the Winter 2003 special registrations of persons from middle-eastern countries. The ACLU-EM has also distributed “Know Your Rights” brochures in English, Spanish, Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi, Farsi, and Somali to educate the public about the rights of individuals during encounters with the police, the FBI, and agents of the Department of Homeland Security.
ACLU-EM regularly holds public meetings at which a wide range of civil liberties issues are discussed and debated. ACLU-EM also routinely provides information to the public and the media through print and online communications about the erosion of civil rights and civil liberties after 9/11, and encourages ACLU members and activists to oppose government anti-terrorism policies that unnecessarily violate civil rights and civil liberties.
The FBI has a history of surveillance of the ACLU and its local affiliates. For example, declassified documents, some released pursuant to previous FOIA requests, reveal that the FBI engaged in extensive spying on the national ACLU and its growing number of regional affiliates throughout the 1940’s, 1950’s and 1960’s, generating tens of thousands of pages of information.
|
