Flyer of the UW-Madison Progressive Student Network / UW Greens, circa 1996
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Getting the Dirt on the Military/Industrial Complex

*Why Should We Be Concerned About Campus Research?

Science is NOT neutral. It is a conscious political decision on the part of colleges and universities whether or not to conduct research for the military/industrial complex. The end result is that social responsibility and academic freedom are compromised in order to further the profiteering and/or oppressive interests of ruling elites. This can be quite blatant in the form of "gag rules" and "academic embargoes" placed on researchers and their findings in the name of "national security" or "proprietary rights." Even more insidious is how this process serves to funnel taxpayer dollars and public servants into the hands of unaccountable undemocratic institutions to further their own perverted agendas. Often school administrators and university researchers seek to justify their mercenary behavior by arguing that no other funding sources exit (do you want to "deny" educational opportunities to struggling grad student?), that the money only goes towards "basic" (i.e. nonapplied) research (do you want the U.S. to slip further behind Japan in science?), that corporations are "good" research partners with a foot in the real world (do you want the university to remain an ivory tower forever?), etc. None of these excuses hold water when one remembers that this dependent situation is entirely contrived and sustained by the establishment. After all, we don't really "need" to know how to make "eco-friendly" explosives from biogenetically-engineered E. coli bacteria - yet the University of Wisconsin Bacteriology Dept. received almost $1 million in DoD money to work on just that, instead of developing bioremediation techniques to clean up the Pentagon's existing toxic waste stockpile.

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*How Can Campus Activists Expose and Challenge Such Research?

The first step is getting your facts straight about who you're dealing with and how they crept onto your campus. Public institutions like UW-Madison are subject to "open records" laws and thus you can often go to the campus library and find a complete listing of ongoing research contracts which were approved by the board of Regents. Many of the larger projects are often "boasted" about in university propaganda, as well - for instance, Exxon's recent gift of $1 million to UW for a new center to study how to minimize catastrophic human error (whoa, the tanker's off course!). Schools that are really in to turning tricks for a few bucks will even have administrators and/or offices devoted entirely to "fostering" university-corporate collaboration. In the case of military research, once you know it's happening on campus you can request "work unit summaries" under the Freedom On Information Act (FOIA). While the technobabble may be indecipherable, the summaries do clearly state which departments and which researchers are involved. This is where the real detective work begins, since you can now approach those directly involved - in particular graduate students - to get the nitty gritty details. Some socially concerned faculty may also be willing to talk "off the record" about their research work.

In the case of corporate-bankrolled research, the paper trail can be a bit more elusive. A good place to start is the Lexis/Nexis database and the 10-K reports that companies must file periodically with the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC). These reports include such details as who the CEOs are, what they "earn" beside their salaries (e.g. generous stock options), citations against the firm (e.g. pending Superfund lawsuits), etc. Labor unions, farm activists and consumer groups can also be a great source of "dirt" on irresponsible corporations. Once you have the info, it's a matter of getting the truth out in a manner that will embarrass the college/university and pressure the administration to minimize/eliminate their complicity. Besides the usual press conferences and letters to the editor, more creative strategies include street theater skits (like the "Marriage from Hell"), informational postering/stickering and expose protests at corporate recruiting sessions and school public relations events. Student activists spoiled a recent "Biotech Fest" at UW-Madison when they handed out flyers protesting Monsanto's rBGH field trials on campus and unfurled a long scroll listing the 80+ chemicals found in milk.

Freedom of Information Act Focal Point

Defense Technical Information Center

Building 5, Cameron Station

Alexandra VA 22304

Dear Sir or Madam:

Under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552, I am requesting copies of Research and Technology Work Unit Summaries for all grants and contracts between the Department of Defense and the University of XXXX that are contained in the DTIC data base on behalf of our group, XXXXXX. We would like copies of the summaries that have been, are, and/or will be active between ______, 20__ and ______, 20__. Please include at least the following information for each Research and Technology Work Unit Summary: title, scientific fields and groups, funding amount, funding organization, performance method, contract/grant number, name of principle investigator, name of responsible DOD organization, name of responsible individual, technical objective, approach, progress, program element number, start date, estimated completion date, project number, task area number, work unit number.

Our non-profit group is comprised of students who are examining DOD funded research at the University of XXXX. We request that the information be released and that a fee waiver or reduction be granted under the FOIA because we see the release of this information primarily benefiting the public. We are willing to cover copying costs. If fees exceed $_____, then please notify us before copying in done.

Thank you for your time and help.

Sincerely,

Name:

Group Name:

Address:

Phone Number:

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*Useful References:

Cohen, Gary and John O'Conner ed. FIGHTING TOXICS - A MANUAL FOR PROTECTING YOUR

FAMILY, COMMUNITY AND WORKPLACE. Island Press: Covelo, CA 1990.

La Botz, Dan. A TROUBLEMAKER'S HANDBOOK - HOW TO FIGHT BACK WHERE YOU WORK

- AND WIN! Labor Notes Books: Detroit, MI 1991.

Mills, Ami Chen. CIA OFF CAMPUS - A DO-IT-YOURSELF HANDBOOK. Bill of Rights Foundation:

Chicago, IL 1990.

Soley, Lawrence C. LEASING THE IVORY TOWER: THE CORPORATE TAKEOVER OF

ACADEMIA. South End Press: Boston, MA 1995.

Stauber, John and Sheldon Rampton. TOXIC SLUDGE IS GOOD FOR YOU - LIES, DAMN LIES,

AND THE PUBLIC RELATIONS INDUSTRY. Common Courage: Monroe, ME 1995.

University Conversion Project (UCP). STUDY WAR NO MORE - UPC'S GUIDE TO UNCOVERING

THE RIGHT WING ON CAMPUS. UCP: Cambridge, MA 1994.

Publications like: Covert Action Quarterly, Multinational Monitor, Boycott Quarterly, Gene Exchange, PR Watch, Bank Check Quarterly, New Internationalist, Earth First! Journal, Z Magazine, etc.