Tell Eric Holder to Stop FBI Raids on Activists
We are calling on our international allies to take action in support of long-time peace and human rights activists who have come under attack for their work against U.S. occupation and military intervention abroad.
On September 24th, 2010, the FBI subjected about a dozen anti-war activists and activists working in solidarity with struggles in Palestine and Colombia to searches and raids of their homes in Illinois, Minnesota and Michigan. Activists in California, Wisconsin and North Carolina were also harassed.
The activists in Illinois, Minnesota and Michigan were served with Grand Jury subpoenas. They are refusing to testify, a brave choice which could land them in jail. The illegitimate Grand Jury process, which began on October 5, must be stopped. The raids and Grand Jury process constitute an FBI abuse of power clearly designed to create a climate of fear among those who dare to fight for peace and justice. We must be vigilant in our defense of these activists and their right to continue their important international solidarity work without harassment.
This is an escalation of the daily targeting of and culture wars against Arab and Muslim communities and immigrants in the United States. It is a continuation of the long-standing repression of dissent in the United States from McCarthyism to the brutal targeting of peoples' movements by COINTELPRO, and, of most recently, environmental justice activists. It is also part of an increasing wave of right-wing hate that has been legislated through state and federal policies that turn police into immigrant bounty hunters.
We are calling on our counterparts - anti-war, human rights, Palestine and other international solidarity activists, anti-racist activists and grassroots organizers - to act in solidarity with those being targeted by political repression. We ask you to stand with us now to publicly defend the rights of all activists and communities in the United States who express dissent against U.S. policy and who work for peace, human rights and global justice within and beyond US borders.