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Why Stop At Muslims? NYPD Also Infiltrating Liberal Groups Or Whatever
By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 23, 2012
Modified Mar 23, 2012
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By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 23, 2012
Modified Mar 23, 2012
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More internal NYPD documents obtained by the Associated Press show that—are you sitting down—the department has busy been infiltrating left-leaning political organizations. What else is new? At this point, if you told us the NYPD had a surveillance team assigned 24/7 to every New Yorker who wore an Obama "HOPE" pin in 2008 we wouldn't be surprised. Of course, we've seen this movie before: Setting aside the NYPD's infiltration of activist groups preparing for the 2004 Republican Convention, this sort of thing goes way back. Just say the word COINTELPRO in certain circles and pull up a chair. But it doesn't make it any less troubling—unless you think Huff Post writer Jordan Flaherty is a potentially bloodthirsty terrorist the NYPD needs to keep an eye on.
The AP reports that the department's Intelligence Division, "a squad that operates with nearly no outside oversight and is so secretive that police said even its organizational chart is too sensitive to publish," sent a man down to New Orleans in the spring of 2008 to attend the People's Summit, "a gathering of liberal groups organized around their shared opposition to U.S. economic policy and the effect of trade agreements between the U.S., Canada and Mexico." Nice work if you can get it. The secret agent New York police officer came back with a report that landed Flaherty in its "intelligence" file:
"One workshop was led by Jordan Flaherty, former member of the International Solidarity Movement Chapter in New York City," officers wrote in an April 25, 2008, memo to David Cohen, the NYPD's top intelligence officer. "Mr. Flaherty is an editor and journalist of the Left Turn Magazine and was one of the main organizers of the conference. Mr. Flaherty held a discussion calling for the increase of the divestment campaign of Israel and mentioned two events related to Palestine."
Cohen, you'll recall, is a veteran CIA division head who came out of retirement to run the NYPD's secretive police intelligence team in 2002. Testifying as part of the ongoing lawsuit against the NYPD's surveillance of RNC protesters, Cohen insisted, "There was no political surveillance. This was a program designed to determine in advance the likelihood of unlawful activity or acts of violence." After all, no one wants a repeat of the violence that infamously marred the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in
But here's the really funny part: Flaherty tells the AP he was not an organizer of the summit, but was in town for a separate film festival, and that he briefly introduced a documentary about Palestine. He doesn't understand why his name is coming up in NYPD intelligence files, and says, "The only threat was the threat of ideas. I think this idea of secret police following you around is terrifying. It really has an effect of spreading fear and squashing dissent."
Asked about the latest insight into the NYPD's controversial intelligence-gathering policies, Commissioner Ray Kelly told reporters today, "We're sort of under attack. The A.P. has done over 30 stories. It's pretty tough to go up against a wire service that has a certain template that it's sticking to. I would submit that they have not done their homework."
Tagged
liberals
nypd surveillance
police state
Ray Kelly
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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