IF MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR WERE ALIVE TODAY

If Martin Luther King, Jr. were alive today, he would speak out against the war in Iraq. He would oppose the racist round up and detention without legal assistance of over a thousand Arab and Muslim men. He would organize to fight the attacks on our civil liberties from the White House, Justice Department, and Congress. And if Martin Luther King, Jr. were alive today, he would be the target of a campaign to discredit him and disrupt his efforts to win peace and justice for all. How do we know? Because this was what King was doing before he was assassinated and the US government, rather than honoring him, was doing everything in its power to stifle and destroy him.

War on Dissent

Before the War on Terrorism, there was a "war on communism" which began over 100 years ago. The big fear then was of radical ideas from immigrants and trade union organizing and anyone sympathizing with workers was called a "communist". The attacks on dissent grew during times of war, hot and cold, reaching its height during the McCarthy period in the 50's. During this time "communists" and suspected "communist sympathizers" were hounded and some were jailed. Files were kept on millions of Americans. In the 50's and 60's, the CIA, whose mandate is to gather foreign intelligence, collected files on 300,000 Americans, including 75 members of Congress.

The FBI formed COINTELPRO in 1956 to spy on "radical or immoral activity". COINTELPRO raided and infiltrated organizations, carried out assassinations and dirty tricks, spread misinformation, and created chaos at rallies. The FBI started spying on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. because he knew communists and because he was mobilizing people to claim their civil rights. The spying turned into blackmail and worse. FBI head, J. Edgar Hoover, even suggested to Dr. King that he avoid disgrace by committing suicide. The FBI also spied on the NAACP, civil rights groups, religious groups, the Boy Scouts of America, and hundreds of other organizations to see if they were infiltrated by communists.

In the 60's and 70's, files were added of anti-Vietnam War protesters, Black nationalists, the "New Left", and women's liberation groups. The IRS flagged tax returns, Army intelligence penetrated groups to look for signs of subversion, state and local police set up "red squads" to conduct their own surveillance and collect files on millions of people. With exposes of government wrongdoing like Watergate, these excesses were curbed and laws were passed to monitor and limit surveillance actions by government agencies and police departments. With the breakup of the Soviet Union, the threat of communism was diminished. Today, the fear of terrorism again allows unconstitutional actions by the government against the American people.

Dr. ML King, Jr., A Threat to National Security

"We must mark Martin Luther King now, if we have not before, as the most dangerous Negro in the future of this Nation from the standpoint of communism, the Negro, and national security … it may be unrealistic to limit [our actions against King] to legalistic proofs that would stand up in court or before Congressional Committees." -- William C. Sullivan, head of the FBI's COINTELPRO program, August 28, 1963.

Why was he considered so dangerous to national security? After passage of the civil rights acts, King called for radical changes in the structure of society to redistribute wealth and power. He became the country's most prominent opponent of the Vietnam War and a strong critic of militaristic US foreign policy. He asked why the US was suppressing revolutions of poor people in the Third World. He complained that the West took huge sums of money in investment profits from poor countries without regard to the welfare of the people.

Before his death, he was organizing the Poor People's Campaign to assemble "a multiracial army of the poor" that would descend on Washington to engage in nonviolent civil disobedience until Congress enacted a "Poor People's Bill of Rights". He called for money going to jobs programs to rebuild American cities, rather than spending billions on the military.

Relevance for Today

The US government has used the terrible tragedy of 9/11 to declare a never-ending "war on terrorism" directed at countries and individuals who disagree with US policies. We are on the verge of a war with Iraq, tensions are high in our relations with North Korea, and billions of dollars are being spent on the military. This is at a time when our economy is in shambles, unemployment is high, and states and cities are cutting crucial services to poor people, the disabled, and our health and education systems. Our government is not doing this to make us more secure. Everyone knows that repression and war will lead to more violence. The issues are US economic and military control of important regions of the world, like the huge oil fields in Iraq, not a more peaceful and cooperative world.

In order to carry out these policies, the Bush administration needs to go to war on dissent here at home. Legislation passed since September 11, including the USA PATRIOT Act, the Homeland Security Act, and federal executive orders, give the Justice Department and local law enforcement sweeping new powers of secret surveillance against lawful advocacy groups, religious and political organizations, and individuals without having any evidence of wrongdoing. Our rights to privacy, freedom of speech, and due process are in jeopardy.

These new laws permit non-citizens to be deported or jailed based on mere suspicion. Suspects may be detained indefinitely without charges or court review even if they have never been charged with or convicted of a crime. Thousands of men of Middle Eastern and South Asian backgrounds have secretly been subject to harassment, interrogation, and detention without charges or access to lawyers, simply because of their religion or ethnic background. The government is allowed to monitor communications between federal detainees and their lawyers, destroying the rights of attorney-client privilege.

It isn't just "others", like Arabs or Muslims, who are under scrutiny. Average citizens can be suspect because of the books we read, the emails we send or receive, the meetings we attend, the posters on our walls, the petitions we sign, our Letters to the Editor, and the opinions we express in our neighborhood coffee shop. People are encouraged to spy on their neighbors and teachers and report people for "suspicious" behavior, often for appearing to be Middle Eastern. High schools must turn over information on their students to the military and universities must report on all foreign students to the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

This lack of due process and accountability violates the rights extended to all persons, citizens and non-citizens, by the Bill of Rights. These rights and freedoms are the very basis of our democracy. Loss of our rights to dissent under protection of the law is a far greater threat to our way of life than terrorist bombs and does nothing to increase security.

What Can We Do?

We can honor the memory of Martin Luther King best by following in his footsteps to defend our rights and liberties, oppose violence and war, and affirm the humanity and worth of all people. We can:

  • Support A Warrant Article Regarding the USA PATRIOT Act and the Protection of Civil Rights and Liberties, which asks the Town of Arlington to join towns across the US in upholding the Bill of Rights.
  • Contact your elected representatives and the President to express your opposition to the USA PATRIOT Act and other oppressive legislation. Send letters to local newspapers. Organize discussions in your schools, organizations, and religious institutions. Sign the ACLU petition to our Congressional delegation to repeal sections of the PATRIOT Act that threaten civil liberties. Stay informed.
  • Take action against a war in Iraq. Speak out and organize opposition. Attend local and national antiwar events, like the February 15 national demonstration in New York City. Arlington UJP is organizing buses.
  • Join and contribute to Arlington United for Justice with Peace. Attend our weekly vigils against war on Monday nights, 5:30-6:30 pm, in Arlington Center and our meetings held on the second and fourth Sundays of each month, 7:00 pm, at Church of Our Saviour, 21 Marathon St.

Arlington United for Justice with Peace

21 Marathon St., Arlington, MA 02474