This one is less theory than reality. COINTELPRO (Counter-Intelligence Project) was J. Edgar HooverÕs dirty war against leftist groups, black militants, Native American activists, Puerto Rican independence promoters, luminaries such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X, civil rights groups, the Nation of Islam, anti-war demonstrators, and just about anyone else he didnÕt happen to likeÑwhich was a lot of people! Long suspected by various groups under surveillance, this program is now mostly established fact, substantiated by documentation obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. Certain people, though, didnÕt need to see the paperwork to know that Hoover had a grudge against themÑthe alarmingly high death and incarceration rates for members of the Black Panthers, the American Indian Movement, and other groups during the Ô60s testify to the programÕs effectiveness at shattering these organizations.

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