[News] Terrorist Watch List Includes Indymedia, Food Not Bombs (Texas)

[Anti-Imperialist News]

 From Austin indymedia: 
<http://austin.indymedia.org/newswire/display/26784/index.php>http://austin.indymedia.org/newswire/display/26784/index.php 


FBI Officer Speaks at Law School, lists Indymedia, Food Not Bombs, 
Communist Party of Texas on "Terrorist Watch List"


09 Mar 2006

In a guest lecture at the University of Texas School of Law on 
Wednesday, FBI Supervisory Senior Resident Agent G. Charles Rasner 
listed Indymedia, Food Not Bombs, and the Communist Party of Texas as 
"Terrorist Watch" cause groups in Austin.

Rasner gave a presentation entitled "Counter-Terrorism Efforts in 
Texas" to a U.S. Law and National Security class at the Law School. 
He used PowerPoint slides to illustrate the nature of the terrorist 
threat in Central Texas. The word "Unclassified" appeared prominently 
in bold red letters on the opening PowerPoint slide.

Listing three categories of cause groups potentially linked to 
terrorist activity, Rasner named white supremacist groups, Islamic 
terrorist groups, and Anarchists. When asked what anarchist activity 
in Austin the FBI was investigating, Rasner referred the questioner 
to the Ted Kaczynski Unabomber case, claiming that Kaczynski "was an 
anarchist." He did not discuss Austin-specific anarchist activity when pressed.

Rasner used a map of Texas to illustrate the existence of the three 
kinds of terrorist groups in the state. Austin was listed as a site 
of all three kinds of terrorist activity.

Rasner then placed the FBI's Central Texas "Terrorist Watch List" on 
the screen. On a list of approximately ten groups, Food Not Bombs was 
listed seventh. Indymedia was listed tenth, with a reference 
specifically to IndyConference 2005. The Communist Party of Texas 
also made the list. Rasner explained that these groups could have 
links to terrorist activity. He noted that peaceful-sounding group 
names could cover more violent extremist tactics.

Food Not Bombs is an all-volunteer organization that recovers food 
that would otherwise be thrown out and serves vegetarian meals to the 
public at no cost. Austin Indymedia is an open newswire in which 
readers may publish news, events, and commentary.

In response to a questioner, Rasner stated that the FBI will attend 
activist group meetings whenever it suspects that the group might 
engage in illegal activity. He said that he saw no problem with an 
agent failing to represent himself as a representative of the FBI and 
implied that the practice was common.

Student Elizabeth Wagoner requested a copy of the PowerPoint 
presentation at the end of the class. Rasner refused, claiming the 
presentation was private government property. He then refused a 
request for the contact information of the FOIA officer in his 
bureau, saying it "was not worth [his] time".

A copy of the PowerPoint presentation has been requested via the 
Freedom of Information Act. We will publish the presentation on 
Indymedia as soon as it becomes available.

The Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 863-9977
www.freedomarchives.org 
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