FBI Wrongly Put Greenpeace, PETA, on Terrorist List: IG

"The FBI improperly investigated some left-leaning U.S. advocacy groups after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the Justice Department said Monday, citing cases in which agents put activists on terrorist watch lists even though they were planning nonviolent civil disobedience.

A report by Inspector General Glenn A. Fine absolved the FBI of the most serious allegation: that domestic groups were targeted purely for their activism against the Iraq war and other political activity, which would have violated their First Amendment rights. Civil liberties groups and congressional Democrats had accused the FBI of employing such tactics during George W. Bush's administration. ...

'The use of McCarthyite tactics against PETA and other groups that speak out against cruelty to animals and exploitative corporate and government practices is un-American, unconstitutional, and against the interests of a healthy democracy,' said a statement from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, an animal rights group that was among those monitored."

Jerry Markon reports for the Washington Post September 20, 2010.

SEE ALSO:

"Watchdog Faults FBI for ‘Factually Weak’ Basis for Investigating Activists" (ProPublica)