Protesters Angered Over Illegal FBI Investigations

Sep 28, 2010 by James

Protesters gathered outside of FBI offices in Minneapolis and Chicago to protest the FBI and their investigations into anti-war protesters. If the FBI investigated anti-war activists then why wouldn’t they investigate and harass anti-FBI activists? That point apparently wasn’t discussed. The protesters were carrying signs saying “stop FBI harassment” and “opposing war is not a crime” because the FBI was carrying out search warrants on American citizens in an attempt to find a link between them, the anti-war protesters, and terrorist groups abroad.

Those who were searched told the Associated Press that they did have ties to activist groups and had traveled abroad and sometimes to the Middle East and Colombia but certainly did not fund terrorism. Jess Sundin ,leader of the Minnesota Anti-War Committee, said that at least 13 people had been subpoenaed to appear before federal grand jury in Chicago.

There is one thing that is still bothering me; why is the FBI investigating terrorism ties? I remember the creation of Homeland Security and I would hope that the FBI does as well so why in the hell are they interfering with their job. I know the FBI has evolved over the years from an interstate police force to a para-military force but I didn’t know that terrorist hunting was their job. What happened to the U.S. Army for that? If American citizens are being investigated for lawful protests and legally using their passport then when is the proverbial line in the sand crossed?

Americans should not be investigated for using their rights no matter the conditions abroad or at home. The Patriot Act has given the FBI and many other agency’s the power to infringe upon those rights in America and Americans living in foreign lands and the fear of terrorism allows that to continue. Since 9/11 there have been no attacks on this nation or inside this nation and the FBI likes to take a lot of credit for that but in reality no one is attacking us anymore. The few failed attempts I feel were blown massively out of proportion to ensure the FBI gets that huge anti-terrorism money every year but that’s just my opinion. Now I’ll probably get a visit from the FBI.

Nearly 270 people protested the FBI and their illegal searches into Americans lives yesterday and the FBI probably added 270 people to the “No Fly List.” It is sad that only 270 people in total protested the searches but fear is a strong tactic and the fear of another 9/11 surprisingly still works on people. We are in the process of reliving history specifically during the 1950s Cold War era “red scare” times. Americans who were deemed “red” or Communist were investigated, arrested, jailed, or killed while the American public turned a blind eye to it for fear of being labeled Communist. This is happening right now to innocent Americans who are anti-government and war yet the government is getting away with it because they say something like “they could be connected to a 9/11 mastermind” or “he/she may have been to a country Al Qaeda operates in.” It is time for the American people to say enough is enough and we want our Constitutional rights back in full.

Source: Associated Press