Red Dust and Broadsides: A Joint Autobiography

By Agnes "Sis" Cunningham and Gordon Friesen

Edited by Ronald D. Cohen

Foreword by Pete Seeger

Perhaps best known for Broadside, the influential magazine they founded in 1962, Agnes "Sis" Cunningham and Gordon Friesen have long been renowned figures on the American left. In this book, these two dedicated social activists - Sis the folk musician and Gordon the radical journalist - offer a spirited account of their personal and political odyssey. The story is illustrated with numerous photographs and drawings.

Born into poverty in rural Oklahoma, further shaped by the hardships of the "dustbowl" Depression years, Sis and Gordon were already committed to radical causes when they met and married in 1941. A short time later they moved to New York City, where they befriended Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie. Sis joined the folk protest group the Almanac Singers, and Gordon continued his work as a journalist.

Although blacklisted for their political views during the McCarthy era, Sis and Gordon persevered and eventually launched Broadside, which they continued to produce for almost twenty years. The magazine was instrumental in promoting the careers of many singer-songwriters, publicing the first works of such artists as Bob Dylan, Janis Ian, Phil Ochs, Buffy Sinate-Marie, and Tom Paxton, as well as the works of more established figures, including Malvina Reynolds and Pete Seeger. Indeed, Broadside helped give birth to a musical revival that energized the country and forged a vital link between the folk music of the 1930s and 1940s and the urban folk revivalists of the 1960s and 1970s.

Excerpt

By the fall Phil Ochs became a contributor, and throughout most of 1963 we hardly put out an issue that didn't contain one or two Ochs songs.

[...]

Phil Ochs started coming within a few months and continued to come long after we discontinued the monthly meetings. He always visited us when in New York after his move to California; he still put his songs on tape for us, and Gordon and I taped long interviews with him, which we transcribed and printed in Broadside. We later recorded some of the conversations on L-P albums through Folkways Records. He spent a lot of time with us during the summer and into the winter of 1975, talking hour after hour about being under surveillance of the FBI. Phil was quite ill, so we taped none of this. But later we confirmed what he said by sending to the Freedom of Information Act for a report on him and receiving over four hundred pages.

Abbie Hoffman's Interview with the FBI in 1968 - Part 2

ABBOTT HOFFMAN, when interviewed by Special Agents (SAS) [...] and [...] on September 6, 1968, advised that he was raised in Worcester, Massachusetts, that he attended Worcester Classical High School, a public school, which "kicked" him out between his junior and senior year. HOFFMAN stated that he wrote a paper against God: that his teacher tore it up: that he "belted" the teacher and was expelled.

For a year thereafter HOFFMAN hung out in the pool halls of Worcester and was then enrolled in Worcester Academy, a private school where he completed his senior year. HOFFMAN then attended Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts. He took graduate work at University of California, Berkeley, California and he took courses in some school in France while at Brandeis.

HOFFMAN stated that he is registered with a Local Board in Massachusetts: that he is 4-F: that "all nuts" like himself are 4-F. HOFFMAN stated he had no military service.

HOFFMAN stated that he worked for about six years after college: that his last job was with State of Massachusetts as a psychologist: that he has held numerous jobs including that of a wholesalesman in Massachusetts. HOFFMAN stated that he has always been able to make money as a pool hustler. HOFFMAN claimed to be a superior pool player. HOFFMAN stated that when he first came to New York City he opened a store to sell the products of the Mississippi poor people: that he sold this store a year ago for one dollar. HOFFMAN said that his wife is also unemployed: that she makes beads at home and sells them wholesale to various bead stores in New York City.

HOFFMAN stated that he wrote a 180 page book, long hand, in three days after returning from Chicago: that he sold this manuscript to a publisher and that he got no money for the manuscript because he plans to donate all profits to "the people." He declined to identify the publisher and claimed that the book would be out in October, 1968, under the "Revolution for the Hell of It."

HOFFMAN stated that his parents are successful middle class Americans: that his father could be classed as a "Goldwaterite." HOFFMAN stated that his father, who has worked all his life and who does not approve of his own views or his acts, is in the wholesale drug business in Worcester, Massachusetts. Further, that when his father saw him on television during the Democratic Convention disorders from Chicago, Illinois, he suffered a heart attack and is still in the hospital.

HOFFMAN stated that he has no money, no bank account, and that he manages "somehow" to get by and to pay his $90.00 per month rent for his apartment. HOFFMAN stated that he does not own an automobile. HOFFMAN stated that his phone number, listed in the Manhattan book, is being changed soon to a private number: that too many "kooks" call him.

HOFFMAN, when interviewed, wore tight blue jeans and a dirty sports shirt held in by a large black leather belt. HOFFMAN's hair was fully grown, like a female, dark brown, curly unkempt. HOFFMAN, who appears to be alert, speaks in the jargon of the "beatnik," using expressions like "man," "my thing," "the establishment," and "I want to turn you on." He is evasive and appears to enjoy being the center of attention. HOFFMAN was cautious but not hostile during the interview. He made no complaint about being interviewed but made it clear that he felt that he was on the opposite side of "things" to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Abbie Hoffman's Interview with the FBI in 1968 - Part 1

SECRET
Federal Bureau of Investigation

Date: 9/12/68

ABBOTT HOFFMAN, also known as Abbie Hoffman, 30 St. Marks Place, New York, New York, was interviewed in the hallway of his apartment at 30 St. Marks Place between 11:05 AM and 11:40 AM, on September 6, 1968, by Special Agents (SAS) [...] and [...].

HOFFMAN, who advised that he was raised in Worcester, Massachusetts, and was graduated from Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, identified himself as a member of the YIP (Youth International Party) and stated that he was in Chicago, Illinois, during the Democratic Convention held in August, 1968.

HOFFMAN, to whom the interviewing SAS identified themselves as representatives of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), was advised that the interviewing agents desired to ask him certain questions regarding his participation in the Chicago disorders; that he was not obligated to speak to the agents and that he did not have to answer any questions which might possibly incriminate him.

HOFFMAN stated that his life is an open book; that he had no objection to the interview; that he understood his rights, and that he had received a letter from the American Civil Liberties Union; that is, the ACLU, only yesterday (September 5, 1968), indicating that the FBI would probably question him concerning his presence in Chicago during the Democratic Convention.

HOFFMAN stated that the Chicago disorders were the result of a set policy on the part of Chicago authorities: that as a representative of the YIP, he visited Chicago on March 25, 1968, and filed an application for a permit, with others, with the Chicago Parks Commission to allow demonstrators to utilize Lincoln Park, later changed to Grant Park, for their "thing" during the convention period: that he then met with Deputy Mayor STAHL, a Mr. BARRY of the Park Commission, certain Chicago police officials and others, and that the application was not then acted upon.

HOFFMAN stated that thereafter this application matter was left in the hands of the Chicago people who also wanted to use the park.

HOFFMAN stated that about five days before the Convention, he was advised that his Chicago group never received a permit to use Grant Park: that thereafter the application for a permit had been withdrawn. HOFFMAN stated that he then decided to go to Chicago to see what he could do to get a park permit; that he then flew to Chicago on a student rate fare and met immediately with Deputy Mayor Stahl and others in a last ditch stand to try to get Grant Park for the demonstrators.

HOFFMAN stated that his experience indicated that city officials usually hold off until the last day, then issue a permit, but that contrary to his advice to Chicago officials, this did not happen. HOFFMAN stated that he and others were told they could, within local law, use Grant Park, like any other city park, each day until 11:00 PM; that they could not sleep in the parks and would have to vacate them by 11:00 PM.

HOFFMAN stated that on Sunday, August 25, 1968, he and others then in Grant Park were confronted by Chicago Police between 6:00 PM and 9:00 PM; that he phoned the commander of the Chicago Police Department, 18th Precinct, between those hours to get a rule on the use of the park and that he was told that his group could legally stay there until 11:00 PM, and that the police unit forcing them about would be withdrawn. HOFFMAN stated that the police did not withdraw, but continued to pressure people out of the park.

HOFFMAN stated that he is identified with YIP, that YIP has no membership, no dues, no membership list, and no officers, but that he did act as a representative of YIP, while meeting with others in Chicago, Illinois. HOFFMAN stated that neither he nor any YIPs with whom he is acquainted in New York City or elsewhere, made any plans to cause any disorders in Chicago, Illinois, nor did they discuss any such ideas, nor did they bring any weapons or similar items to Chicago to protect themselves from attack or to use in attack.

HOFFMAN stated that while in Chicago, he made no plans to cause any disorders, that he gave no orders for anyone to become involved in any disorders, and that he has no knowledge of any such plans or activity on the part of any individual or any group in Chicago, New York City, or elsewhere.

HOFFMAN stated that the YIP issued a calendar of events for the Chicago Convention period: that he helped to prepare this program, and that it is a public record of all his own and all YIP plans, and that no disorders were scheduled or even suggested. HOFFMAN stated that he urged persons associated with the Convention confrontation to remain non-violent and that his position and policy in this regard has been quoted in the public press several times and was included in an article relating to him which appeared in the "New York Post", a New York City daily newspaper, on September 1 or 2, 1968.

HOFFMAN stated that he never advocated any disorder, fights with the police, or the use of weaponry of any sort, in connection with the Chicago disorders, and that he has no knowledge of such plans or activities on the part of anyone else.

HOFFMAN stated that he heard general gossip of absurd statements made by persons unknown to him, about putting LSD in the Chicago drinking water, and that since such things were so foolish and impractical he never took them seriously, but took them to be just talk and "letting off steam."

HOFFMAN stated that he could only speak for himself concerning motivation to visit Chicago during the period the Democratic Convention was being held. HOFFMAN stated that he believes in a free, unregimentated life: that he would hope to influence everyone to join him: that the philosophy of the Democratic Party advocates the continuance of the present system which is a monetary trap which causes people to work unnecessarily for an entire lifetime and only to perpetuate the system. HOFFMAN stated that in his opinion current technical advancements and scientific achievements, all of a revolutionary nature, can feed and clothe the entire world; that such technical and scientific achievements and their future refinements could, if allowed by the establishment to do so, release everyone from an organized life of work and entrapment, and that he wanted to utilize the Democratic Convention in Chicago to do his "thing," which was to confront the Democrats and to publicize his own philosophy of life.

HOFFMAN stated that he is not against the Democratic Party itself; that it is one group of many which advocated the established way of life. Further, that he has been called many things including a "Communist": that he is not a Communist and could never accept Communism since it is another absurd, regimented, disciplined group with its own aims and establishment type objectives.

HOFFMAN stated that he is against all political philosophies, that all presidential candidates hope to retain the establishment although they don't say so. Further, that he has expressed himself as favorable to George Wallace, only because Wallace is the least hypocritical candidate in that he is truthful and outright; that even though you can't agree with him on many points you know where he stands. HOFFMAN stated that he has made statements to this effect in public gatherings, in television interviews and interviews with the press, and that he has worn Wallace buttons at such gatherings and at public demonstrations.

HOFFMAN stated that "I presume that I will eventually be arrested for conspiracy because of my presence in Chicago." HOFFMAN stated that he did not know what the conspiracy charge, if any, would be. HOFFMAN stated that it is his understanding that his name was among those who are bringing a civil suit against the City of Chicago and Mayor Daley for 600 million dollars; that such suit started by a daughter of former Senator Leverett Saltonstall of Massachusetts and with a New York City law firm, if successful would allow the wronged demonstrators to give each Chicago police officer, who resigns from that police force in protest against the policies of the Chicago police, a sum of $10,000.00 each.

HOFFMAN stated that during his recent stay in Chicago he was under surveillance by the Chicago police: that he became friendly with those following him for his so-called protection, and that he enjoyed coffee and transportation from them.

HOFFMAN stated that he stayed at the Chicago home of a friend, whom he declined to identify; that he was out of the parks each night, and that, to his recollection, he was arrested and held for thirteen hours the day before that major trouble in Grant Park and near the Hilton Hotel and that he did not participate in these disorders.

HOFFMAN disclaimed any responsibility for any disorders at Chicago, Illinois.

Students for a Democratic Society - FBI Summary

A source has advised that the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), as presently regarded, came into being at a founding convention held June, 1962, at Port Huron, Michigan. From an initial posture of "participatory democracy" the line of the national leadership has revealed a growing Marxist-Leninist adherence which currently calls for the building of a revolutionary youth movement. Concurrently, the program of SDS has evolved from civil rights struggles to an anti-Vietnam war stance to an advocacy of a militant anti-imperialist position. China, Vietnam and Cuba are regarded as the leaders of worldwide struggles against United States imperialism whereas the Soviet Union is held to be revisionist and also imperialist.

At the June, 1969, SDS National Convention, Progressive Labor Party (PLP) forces in the organization were expelled. As a result, the National Office (NO) group maintained its National Headquarters at 1608 West Madison Street, Chicago, and the PLP faction set up headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts. This headquarters subsequently moved to Boston. Each group selected its own national officers, which include three national secretaries and a National Interim Committee of eight. Both the NO forces and the PLP forces claim to be the true SDS. Both groups also print their versions of "New Left Notes" which sets forth the line and the program of the particular fashion. The NO version of "New Left Notes" was recently printed under the title "The Fire Next Time" to achieve a broader mass appeal.

Two major factions have developed internally within the NO group, namely, the Weaterhman or Revolutionary Youth Movement (RYM) I faction, and the RYM II faction. Weatherman is action-oriented upholding Castro's position that the duty of revolutionaries is to make revolution. Weatherman is regarded by RYM II as an adventuristic, elitist faction which denies the historical role of the working class as the base for revolution. RYM II maintains that revolution, although desired, is not possible under present conditions, hence emphasizes organizing and raising the political consciousness of the working class upon whom they feel successful revolution depends. Although disclaiming control and domination by the Communist Party, USA, leaders in these two factions have in the past proclaimed themselves to be communists and to follow the precepts of a Marxist-Leninist philosophy, along pro-Chinese communist lines.

A [...] source has advised that the PLP faction which is more commonly known as the Worker Student Alliance is dominated and controlled by members of the PLP, who are required to identify themselves with the pro-Chinese Marxist-Leninist philosophy of the PLP. They advocate that an alliance between workers and students is vital to the bringing about of a revolution in the United States.

SDS regions and university and college chapters, although operating under the outlines of the SDS National Constitution, are autonomous in nature and free to carry out independent policy reflective of local conditions. Because of this autonomy internal struggles reflecting the major factional interests of SDS have occurred at the chapter level since the beginning of the 1969-70 school year.

Get Rubin!

While currently many Americans find themselves in the net of surveillance activities by intelligence agencies, in the past violating privacy in this manner required a couple of pages of justification. For example, when Phil Ochs' friend Jerry Rubin proved to be a menace to the U.S. government, the FBI wrote the following memo to the Attorney General:

May 13, 1968

MEMORANDUM FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

RE: JERRY CLYDE RUBIN
SECURITY MATTER - COMMUNIST

Jerry Clyde Rubin traveled to communist Cuba 1964 via Czechoslovakia in violation of a Government ban on travel to Cuba. Thereafter, he was the founder and served as cochairman of the Vietnam Day Committee, Berkeley, California, a vigorous sponsor of antiwar demonstrations and protest rallies between 1965 to 1967 in the San Francisco area. Demonstrations sponsored by this organization under the leadership of Rubin led to numerous arrests and injuries to demonstrators. Rubin, himself, was arrested in August, 1965, in a demonstration which virtually trapped General Maxwell D. Taylor in a hotel office.

Since this period, Rubin became the Project Director for the National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam in New York, New York. In this capacity, he was the coordinator of demonstrations at the Pentagon and in Washington, D.C., October 20-22,1967. These activities also led to violence and mass arrests, including the arrest of Rubin for refusing to move from a restricted area.

In January, 1968, he was the founder and is now employed as a staff member of the Youth International Party, New York, New York. This group was reportedly organized to promote a "festival of life" demonstration at the National Democratic Convention in Chicago in August, 1968.

With little apparent effort or planning, this organization has already backed two impressive demonstrations. One of these, called a "yip-in," was held at Grand Central Stations in New York City on a late Saturday night for the purpose of celebrating the coming of spring. Violence and mass arrests occurred and the demonstration developed antidraft and antiwar implications. This organization presently plans another demonstration for Macy's Department Store in New York City on June 8, 1968.

Rubin constitutes a danger to the national security as evidenced by revolutionary statements. On the occasion of a public speech June 26, 1965, he stated the following must be included as a part of the peace movement: "massive civil disobedience and picketing," "working in slum areas," "teach-ins against labor unions," and "we must consider treason--deliberate sabotage of the war machine." He ended the speech by stating members of the peace movement must be willing to "put their bodies on the line." Participating in a panel discussion on November 27, 1965, he said the power structure in the United States had to be changed and he wanted demonstrations and civil disobedience rather than liberal means.

Coverage of Rubin's activities at the headquarters of the Youth International Party has been established and efforts are currently being made to increase this coverage. It is to be noted that many of the Youth International Party followers are "hippie types" and such would normally include numerous students. It could reasonably be expected that many of Rubin's contacts and organizational efforts would be made at night from his residence telephone. For this reason, a telephone surveillance of his residence would afford vital information as to organizational plans and the identity of key organizers, which would not be otherwise obtained through coverage of his place of employment.

The history of this individual in the direction of demonstrations which lead to violence has been established. It is recognized that he is capable of creating, through such demonstrations, a major civil disturbance if complete coverage of his activities is not effected.

Accordingly, I recommend the installation of a telephone surveillance on the residence of Jerry Clyde Rubin at 13 East 3rd Street, New York, New York, or any address to which he may move in the future.

Very truly yours,

John Edgar Hoover
Director

Approved ___________________
Date _______________________

Later that year, Rubin caught on to the surveillance:

"Merry Jerry Bugged," Berkeley Barb (December 20-December 26, 1968)
By Stew Albert

“The FBI has been bugging me for years," Jerry Rubin told BARB over a bugged phone from New York. "Now they've admitted it publicly."

"The shit all came out on the appeal of my conviction on the Pentagon bust,” Jerry rapped. “The Supreme Court says the FBI has to admit and tell the judge if any evidence in the case came as a result of electronic tapping.”

"The Justice Department claims they didn’t get any evidence on the Pentagon bust as the result of tapping but they might be bullshitting,” Jerry charged.

"Because I cannot hear any of the tapes and we just have to take their word. The government says they used electronic devices. They might have been either phone tapping or apartment bugging, or maybe both.”

Jerry’s lawyer in New York, Bill Kunstler, has gotten a delay on his New York pot trial.

"He will demand that the judge in the grass case hear the tapes and find out if the prosecution got any of their evidence from bugging,” Rubin continued.

"If that happens we’ll get the case thrown out. Because the pigs have previously claimed they got all their info from a stool pigeon!!

"The Justice Department says they were tapping someone else in the interests of their security, and only accidentally heard me,” Jerry scoffed. “But my lawyer, who was also Rap’s lawyer, says this is what they always claim. They did this in Rap Brown’s case.”

Rubin calls it a “weird feeling to think that the federal pigs have been listening to my phone calls and dinner conversations for the last year.”

He pictures them “drunk and fat, a can of beer in their hands, trying to figure out what half the words I use mean. I hope it drives them crazy,” he said.

Merry Jerry used to be the easiest going guy when it came to wire-tapping. He always thought a lot of people were uptight about Big Brother having his ear to the wall. He has now learned, as we all must, that a bit of paranoia is pure reality.

Bill Ayers

With the Weather Underground and in particular Bill Ayers back in the media spotlight due to his previous associations with Barack Obama, here is a look back at the late 1960s and early 1970s with a summary written by the FBI in 1976, which sought to connect the group with foreign influences:

WILLIAM CHARLES AYERS, Aka
Michael Joseph Rafferty, Jr.
Julies Michael Taylor,
Hank Anderson

BILL AYERS is a white male who was born on December 26, 1944, in Oak Park, Illinois. AYERS was one of the authors of the "Weatherman Statement" upon which the WUO was founded in 1969 and has been considered to be one of the leaders of the organization since its founding. Although AYERS was not arrested during the WUO "Days of Rage" he was one of the leaders of these riots. AYERS was also one of the more influential people attending the WUO "Flint, Michigan War Council." AYERS submerged into the underground in early 1970 and remains therein. AYERS' younger brother RICHARD JAMES AYERS, who is presently being sought by the FBI for desertion from the military service, and his former sister-in-law MELODY KAY ERMACHILD have also been active in the WUO underground.

Foreign Travel and/or Contacts

On August 15, 1969, it was learned that AYERS was scheduling himself to depart for Canada that date for the purpose of conferring with a group of thirty individuals who had been in Cuba during the recent past and who were due to arrive by boat on August 16, 1969. (It is noted that among those individuals returning to the United States via Canada at that time were such WUO functionaries as TED GOLD, BERNARDINE DOHRN, DIANA OUGHTON, DIONNE DONGHI and ELEANOR RASKIN.

On July 29, 1969, AYERS made a speech on the campus of the University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, during which time he discussed the SDS's role in the Venceremos Brigade and promoted this trip to Cuba. During the course of this speech AYERS commented as follows in response to a question about the Brigade:

"In November and beginning January, SDS was involved in sending 150 people, both times to Cuba to cut cane, to cut sugar, as part of Cuba's program to create, to put out 50 million, or what is it 100 million, 10 million tons of sugar."

AYERS continued as follows:

"They are not being paid because they are not honkeys who need to get paid in order to do something, in order to serve the people, and what they're going to do is, there will be about 75 SDS people on each trip and about 75 people from, recruited from the Black Panther Party and Young (illegible) organizations, and other black and brown organizations that will go to Cuba, are going to live and learn about the country, by going to work to create and help the Cubans create a solid economy in the face of an economic boycott by the United States, in the face of constant threats from the United States, in fact a couple of invasions that didn't work because the Cuban people were too well armed and well educated. The Venceremos Brigade is an idea which is an attempt to show the people of the world that all Americans aren't solid in their nature of Cuba, and that all Americans aren't solid in their support of the economic boycott of Cuba, and so we are going to go and we are going to attempt to, attempt to help the Cubans in their efforts. DAVID JOHNS from the (SDS) National Office is one person who's going on that trip, other people from here who are interested should talk to BILL THOMAS from Portland afterwards because he's got, in Portland, he's got applications. It's a simple matter, if you're under 17 you need your parents' permission. Yes."

[Redacted portion]

After the WUO submerged into an underground status, BILL AYERS and NAOMI JAFFE traveled to Canada for the purpose of meeting with representatives of the Quebec Liberation Front. When the pair returned, AYERS had $2,000 in his possession that he definitely did not have when JAFFE and he went into Canada.

[From an earlier portion of the report:]

No Marxist-Leninist denies the necessity of armed struggle. The centrality of the debate on this issue among revolutionaries is primarily that of timing. Should a revolutionary situation not exist, should the masses not be sufficiently antagonized by the ruling class, the carrying out of armed violence is, within the revolutionary left, adventurism. When Weatherman engaged in sabotage and bombings in their early years they were castigated by the communist left not for having engaged in confrontations against the state but rather for engaging in such activity at a time when they had no chance of encouraging a revolutionary situation. In 1976, however, a more mature WUO makes a similar criticism against the SLA, thusly coming to grips with their own early adventuristic failures. The WUO does not reject armed struggle, however. But the WUO of 1976 recognizes that politics comes first; that violence is subsumed within a recognizable revolutionary ideology, Marxism-Leninism. Their view is summed up in the following document issued in the spring of 1976:

"Politics in Command" by CELIA SOJOURN and BILLY AYERS, Weather Underground Organization

The Necessity of Violent Revolution

There are many on the left who self-righteously condemn all violence of revolutionaries. They are keeping their own hands clean by avoiding the full consequences of revolutionary ideas. For these people, the revolution will happen only some day and hopefully be made by somebody else. But power concedes nothing without a demand. Armed struggle is an extension of political struggle, just as war is politics with bloodshed. Under certain historical conditions political struggle leads necessarily to armed conflict. When a small ruling class maintains itself in power by force and violence, when the masses of people are forced to work and live in brutalized and violent conditions, political struggle both peaceful and violent is the inevitable result.

Reactionary capitalist violence is criminal: revolutionary violence will bring about the new society. Marxism-Leninism holds that 'the fundamental question of every revolution is the question of power.' Marx considered violence as 'the midwife of all old societies about to bring forth a new one.' The capitalist system of private property is protected forcibly by a group of violent, dangerous men. The development of mass revolutionary violence is essential to smash the state of the exploiters and to wrest power from the armed defenders of imperialism.

Politics in Command

Our job is not only to carry out action -- that is comparatively simple. Our job is to succeed in making a revolution. The guerrillas, like all revolutionaries, bear the responsibility of developing full political strategy, and a mistake in military strategy can be deadly. The stakes are high, not only for the people and organizations carrying out military work, but for the course of the revolution. Ho Chi Minh said, 'a military without politics is like a tree without roots -- useless and dangerous.' That is why we use the slogan 'Politics in Command.'

Our goal is to build communist organization toward the stage where armed struggle becomes a mass phenomenon led by a Marxist-Leninist party: a revolutionary stage. Organization is the strongest resource of the people. Organization unites and builds and means that each day's efforts add up. Organization is made up of individuals but is bigger and longer lasting than any one individual. Individuals are precious but organization is decisive. Only organization allows continuity of experience and leadership, and carries the deeds of the individual fighters beyond themselves into the future....

The strategic necessity for this period is to mobilize the oppressed and exploited people against US imperialism. Militarily this is the stage of armed propaganda; the test of action is primarily the ability to win the people....

...But revolutionary violence must be specific, comprehensible to the people, and humane. The violence of the revolution must be clearly distinguished to the oppressed and exploited people from the violence of capitalist society. People do not need us to be fearful, or to create chaos. Chaos prevails. Our task is to show the way out of the madness....

...We must never hesitate to fight, but we must never build any mystification about violence. We must be a force of armed militants, not militarists....

We do not condemn violence that originates from the left, just as we do not condemn violence against the state that originates from the working class. The oppressed peoples and the working class have a right and an obligation to develop armed struggle as a means to liberation.

It is a right wing error to argue that only legal forms of struggle are legitimate. For some, no level of mass struggle will justify armed struggle; these are naive and irresponsible people, never ready to raise the question of violence or of the need to fight and ultimately win state power....

...Our revolution will need both open and clandestine movements, legal and illegal struggle, peaceful and armed struggle -- and we will need harmony and organization among all levels of the struggle toward the goal of a revolutionized and fighting people.

[Later excerpt:]

The Weatherman move toward armed struggle was distinctly part of their internationalist approach to revolution firstly, because the Vietnamese needed such support and secondly, because they felt the revolutionary consciousness of the American masses would be heightened by the impending victory of the Third World over American imperialism. The National Action called for the fall of 1969 was deemed to be the major effort which would bring to youth a revolutionary class consciousness. The opening of another front in the international revolutionary struggle under the slogan "Bring The War Home" would both serve to defeat U.S. imperialism in Vietnam and create the conditions for real revolution in the heart of the "monster."

"I think that the national action has to be seen in the context of a strategy that's going to win, that's going to help the NLF concretely, that's going to build Weatherman, and that's going to build a fighting revolutionary youth movement...

I think people should push out this slogan 'Bring The War Home.' We're not just saying bring the troops home, bring the US troops home and deploy them some place some other time, we're saying bring the war home...

I think people understand how this kind of action at this time, given the whole thing in Paris and the situation the Vietnamese are in now, can concretely aid the Vietnamese. The other thing that people have to get confident about is that we can build a revolutionary youth movement."

Bill Ayers, Educational Secretary, SDS; National Action Conference, Cleveland, Ohio, August 29-September 1, 1969
New Left Notes; September 12, 1969

Read more of the FBI report

The Lost Chicago 8 Tapes

During the course of making Chicago 10, director Brett Morgen made an incredible archival discovery: courtroom recordings of the Chicago 8 trial, made by the court stenographer in an attempt to make sense of the proceedings. The reels had sat unlabeled in a Chicago archive for nearly four decades. While some of the audio had degraded, other parts of the tapes provided the basis for the voice actors' work in Chicago 10, allowing them to hear what lesser known voices like Thomas Foran and Judge Julius Hoffman sounded like. I've uploaded an excerpt from these recordings, which provides fascinating insight into the tone of the trial, here.

In a related historical note, the prosecution in Chicago 8 trial was able to listen in on private conversations of the defense with the aid of the Chicago Police and/or FBI. This information was made public in a judgment in 1981 where David Dellinger, Abbie Hoffman, William Kunstler, and Jerry Rubin had attempted to expunge their original Chicago trial convictions. Presented below is an excerpt from the trial judgment dated August 19, 1981:

One of the FBI memoranda indicates that United States Attorney Thomas Foran requested the FBI before the 1969 conspiracy trial to monitor closely the activities of the defendants and obtain any statements they might have made "to show possible admissions, to thwart a possible attempt to seek a change of venue due to publicity, and to show possible contempt of court before, during, and after the trials by the defendants and their lawyers." A subsequent FBI memorandum states that, during trial, Foran requested the FBI to record any statements made by the defendants, as such recordings "would be invaluable to prove contempt actions" and to demonstrate (in response to a request for change of venue because of adverse publicity) that "the defendants generated their own publicity."

Another FBI memorandum suggests that Judge Hoffman had ex parte conversations with Foran concerning both the defendants' possible claim of adverse publicity and the possible contempt citations against the defendants.

According to another FBI memorandum, "Chief Judge William J. Campbell (of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois) advised ... in strictist (sic) confidence that Judge Hoffman based on actions of the defendants and attorneys in the courtroom may call a mistrial and send all defendants and their attorneys to jail for contempt for six months." Another FBI memorandum indicates that Chief Judge Campbell advised the FBI that a subpoena served by the defendants on the FBI would be quashed.

Three of the documents indicate that the Chicago Police and possibly the FBI had surreptitiously attended and/or surveilled several meetings of the defendants and their counsel. It appears that information obtained in this manner (including trial strategies and potential arguments on appeal) was forwarded to Assistant United States Attorney Richard Schultz, one of the prosecutors at the 1969 conspiracy trial.

Another FBI memorandum relates to a threatening letter that was allegedly signed by "The Black Panthers" and addressed to two of the jurors. After Judge Hoffman showed this letter to one of these two jurors (who defendants believed was favorable to their position), she stated that she feared to remain on the jury. This juror was therefore replaced by one of the alternate jurors (who, defendants allege, was engaged to be married to a "patronage dispenser" of former Chicago Mayor Richard Daley). Defendants challenged the authenticity of the letter and requested that the district court order a full investigation. Judge Hoffman indicated he would do so. The memorandum from the FBI file, however, reads in part:

Assistant United States Attorney) Jack S. Schmetterer ... requested letter sent to Petersen family and King family be examined for latent fingerprints. He desired absolutely no other investigation or 'outside contacts' at this time. No investigation should be undertaken without contacting him or the USA Thomas Foran. Judge Hoffman concurs.

Sing Out! (Or, Don't)

Probably the most famous American folk music magazine, Sing Out evolved out of an organization called People's Artists. People's Artists, Inc. changed its name to Sing Out, Inc. in 1956, and informant passed on a letter expressing this intent to the FBI. The FBI spent months in 1957 trying to figure out if the name change had in fact occurred. It was later confirmed through letters sent by Sing Out, Inc. to the U.S. Government Copyright Office, who then forwarded copies to the FBI. Their interest in the organization was Communist influence or affiliations. People's Artists had been "cited as a Communist front" by the California Committee on Un-American Activities, and that information was sufficient enough to begin an investigation.

IV. SUBVERSIVE RAMIFICATIONS

A. Connection with Communist Party

Informants, who are familiar with certain phases of Communist Party activity in the New York area, were contacted during August and September, 1957, and none could furnish any information that the Communist Party (CP) is sponsoring or promoting Sing Out, Inc.

The special agents in New York then listed a series of "CP Affiliations of Individuals Connected with Sing Out, Inc." Most of the names mentioned to this day remain classified:

On September 26, 1952, T-5 reported that [...] has been for many years a well-known entertainer at many CP affairs. T-5 has no factual knowledge that [...] is a member of the CP; however, he feels reasonably sure that if he is not a member, he is a strong sympathizer. T-5 stated that [...] is a singer and a piano player and that all of his songs are slanted to suit the particular Communist affair at which he is performing. T-5 stated that he remembers [...] back in the early thirties attending and entertaining at various Communist functions.

One of the few declassified names in the file is that of John Lautner, a CP organizer, who informed the FBI that a certain performer "entertained children of CP functionaries." Another is a mention of Earl Robinson, songwriter ("Joe Hill," "The Ink is Black, the Page Is White," and "Ballad for Americans") and CP member.

In January 1958, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) received a subscription solicitation letter from Sing Out, signed by Pete Seeger. The letter read:

Dear Friend:

I thought you would be interested to know that the little magazine, SING OUT, has been blossoming in recent months.

Articles of original research, such as "Songs of the Woman Suffrage Movement" have received acclaim from many different quarters. Discussion pieces, like Sam Hinton's "The Singer of Folksongs and His Conscience" have made the magazine livelier than ever.

And the songs have been maintaining an increasingly high quality. It is a matter of historical fact that a number of fine songs, such as "Goodnight Irene," "Tzena, Tzena," "Sixteen Ton," "So Long," and others were printed in SING OUT, or its predecessor PEOPLE'S SONGS, long before they sold millions on the hit parade.

I'm willing to bet that some of the songs in our recent issues, such as "Dr. Freud," "Housewive's Lament," or "Knickerbocker Line" will sooner or later also be known by millions.

During the past year I've sung, in person, for around 200,000 people -- mostly in schools and colleges. After each concert I've had dozens of requests as to where someone could get this or that song -- and nine times out of ten I find I am referring to SING OUT as the only source for the song in question.

The increased news in SING OUT also makes it of value; news of records and books (every issue of SING OUT contains a complete listing of all folk music records issued in the previous three months), and radio and TV programs and anywhere else that folk and topical songs make news.

Looking forward to getting your subscription,

Sincerely,

Pete Seeger

P.S. - SING OUT subscription rates are: One Year - $2.00 -- Two Years - $3.00.

In forwarding the letter to J. Edgar Hoover, NACA wrote: "The enclosed material is forwarded for your information and any action deemed appropriate. No action thereon is being taken by this office."

The FBI's investigation into Sing Out was formally closed in 1958, but the magazine's name was to appear sporadically in the FBI's files after that, such as in 1960 when U.S. Customs impounded a shipment from Peking, China intended for Sing Out that contained the books Folk Songs of China, People's Music, and Research on Music.

Also in 1960, one upset subscriber from Canada felt the need to write a letter expressing his concern to the FBI:

Feb. 9, 1960

Dear Sirs;

I recently subscribed to the publication "Sing Out," and after having read the first copy, I have the suspicion that it might be "Pink" in nature.

I had originally understood that the magazine was a collection of universal Folk Songs, but it also has a number of articles and editorials.

Should you confirm my suspicions, would you be good enough to advise me how I might have my name stricken from their records, and my subscription cancelled.

Looking forward to your earliest reply, I remain,

Cordially yours,

/s/ [...]

The return letter from J. Edgar Hoover read: "Your letter dated February 9, 1960, has been received, and the interest which prompted your communication is indeed appreciated. While I would like to be of assistance to you, the function of the FBI as a fact-gathering agency does not extend to furnishing evaluation or comments concerning the character or integrity of any individual, publication or organization. I regret, therefore, that I am unable to comment upon the publication you mentioned."

The last substantive mention came when a teen-aged son in Baltimore in April 1960 showed his father (an employee of the Naval Ordnance Laboratory) a copy of The People's Song Book, published by Sing Out, the book found its way to the Director of the FBI. The Baltimore field office, however, had no information on Sing Out, Inc. The office photocopied select pages of the book, including the back cover:

This collection is a must for anyone seriously interested in American people's music."
MARC BLITZSTEIN, composer

"A collection of songs that really means something."
HAROLD ROME, composer

"Next to resurrecting and keeping alive the memory of the people who helped build America--Tom Paine, Washington, Jefferson, Jackson, John Brown, Lincoln, Debs and FDR, and the hosts they led--is the assembling and publishing of the songs that were the inspiration of generations of Americans."
ROCKWELL KENT, artist and author

"A long-awaited record of a kind of American folk music which should long ago have entered the consciousness of the American people."
LEONARD BERNSTEIN, conductor and composer

"The new People's Song Book is something that we have been needing for many years. To collect the main freedom, topical, union and folk songs together in one book is a real service to America and Americans. Boni and Gaer, as well as People's Songs, are to be congratulated on the fine selection and presentation of this book."
EARL ROBINSON, composer and folk singer

"THE PEOPLE'S SONG BOOK is a collection of songs of, by and for the people. It is directly concerned with the problems of today and should help to make us aware that music is a part of everything we do in our life."
NORMAN LLOYD, composer and Director of Education, Juilliard School of Music

Gordon Friesen: Interview with the FBI, 1945

GORDON FRIESEN was telephonically contacted at his residence at 353 East 84th Street and requested to appear at the New York Field Division Office for interview. He was interviewed on March 27, 1945 after the purpose of his requested appearance was made known to him. The following is the record of questions put to and answers made by GORDON FRIESEN:

New York, New York
March 27, 1945

By Special Agent Thomas M. Corbett:

Q. What is your full name?

A. GORDON ELMER FRIESEN.

Q. What is your present title and position?

A. Well, my present title is Script Editor with the Master Radio Desk in the Office of War Information.

Q. What is your local address?

A. 353 East 84th Street, New York City.

Q. Are you at the present time a member of the Communist Political Association?

A. I am not.

Q. Have you ever been a member of the Communist Political Association?

A. I have not.

Q. Have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?

A. No.

Q. Have you ever attended meetings of the Communist Political Association or Communist Party?

A. I have attended several meetings of the Communist - I have never attended any meeting of the Communist Political Association. I have attended several meetings of the Communist Party. Yes, Sir.

Q. Can you tell us the date of the last meeting of the Communist Party you attended?

A. I don't recall exactly the date. I once attended the Communist Party meeting at Madison Square Garden. I think it was the - I'm sure it was the fall of 1942. I remember there was snow falling so it must have been late in 1942. I don't recall, but I think Mr. EARL BROWDER spoke, but I don't remember exactly if he did.

Q. How many meetings of the Communist Party have you attended?

A. Well, I attended a meeting, I don't recall whether it was a Communist Party meeting or an event staged by the "Daily Worker", in Detroit in the summer or fall of 1943, at a place called Graystone Gardens, I think. It was around the corner from where I lived at the time. In both instances they were open meetings and I was, I wanted to see what was going on.

Q. Are those the only two occasions at which you attended any Communist Party meetings?

A. They are the only occasions I can recall offhand. In the spring of 1941, I think it was the latter part of March, I went to Oklahoma City from my hometown in Weatherford, Oklahoma, in the western part of the state, to become chairman of what is known as the Political Prisoners Committee in order to do publicity work and help in the defense of, well they were, I think there were nine people charged with their criminal syndicalism. Four of them were tried. In each instance each either admitted or it was fairly well proved that they were members of the Communist Party. One of them was openly the State Secretary of the Communist Party in Oklahoma.

But the charge was, well the principle for which I came to their defense, there were very few people in Oklahoma who would do it, was that of selling books. They sold MARXIST literature as well as a lot of other stuff. The Oklahoma County Police, if I remember right, confiscated - the Oklahoma County Sheriff confiscated some ten thousand books, and I went to their defense and became Chairman of the Political Prisoners Committee.

Q. What was the entire name of that committee?

A. I think that is the entire name of it, the Oklahoma Political Prisoners Committee.

Q. Was that connected with the National Committee for the Defense of Political Prisoners?

A. No, it was purely a local committee.

Q. What was your interest in this committee, Mr. FRIESEN?

A. Well I had, I had what I considered more or less of a liberal background, and before I assumed this position, which took me before the public eye as chairman of this committee, I went into it rather thoroughly and the issue to me did not seem to be one of Communism at all. The people who were prosecuting this case there had a book burning in which a certain [...], conducted a book burning. I forget where in the hell it was, but it was out on Eastern Avenue in Oklahoma City in rodeo grounds or something, and his forces raided this book store which the Communists ran on East Grand Avenue and piled his books up and set fires to them. Well, in my mind it was exactly and precisely the same damn thing that was happening in Berlin. The books which were burnt, were burned, were by the same authors and same titles, and I looked further into it and this [...] who was conducting the G-- d--- thing had the background of the Silver Shirts in California, had been associated with the Party, and the guy who was pressing the charges was an Assistant County Attorney by the name of [...] who was connected with the Coughlinites, who in my mind along with [...] were trying to institute Fascism into countries which were interrelated, and not a question of Communism at all but a question of Fascism.

Q. Were you compensated for your activity in that committee?

A. I was not compensated to any great degree, no.

Q. By whom were you paid for the compensation you did receive?

A. The committee appealed for funds in order to carry on the defense, and from these funds I received enough to just keep alive. There was no set sum whatsoever. I wrote a pamphlet for them.

Q. What was the title of this pamphlet?

A. The name was "Oklahoma Witch Hunt".

Q. Did you receive any payment resulting from the sale of that pamphlet?

A. Well, I received a certain sum for writing it. It was considered more or less freelance work on my part.

Q. By whom were you reimbursed?

A. I was reimbursed from funds taken in by the Oklahoma Political Prisoners Committee. We had a number of contributors in the bulk of the state of Oklahoma. People who were afraid to get out in the public eye and make their names known, but were prepared to contribute funds in order to carry on the work we were doing, which they were convinced was a defense of the American Bill of Rights, the violation of which in this case might ultimately lead to Fascism.

Q. Have you ever registered to vote as a member of the Communist Party?

A. No, I have not.

Q. Did you ever sign a petition for Communist Party candidates?

A. I don't recall that I ever did. During that time in Oklahoma, I was answering your question, I did attend a number of Communist Party meetings because people we were fighting for were Communists and I wanted to find out what in the h--- they were up to and so forth. I don't recall where, but I did attend several of them.

Q. Did you distribute any Communist literature?

A. No, I never did.

Q. Have you ever written any Communist literature?

A. No, I never have. However, I wrote this pamphlet called the "Oklahoma Witch Hunt" to which I signed my name, and which I was thoroughly convinced was the right thing to do at the time, and which I am still convinced was right.

Q. Do you have anything further to say concerning the questions I put to you? Any statement you would like to put on the record?

A. Well, I think I pretty well stated my position, at least during that particular period, and it is added because of the convictions I held before I went to Oklahoma City to take up the defense of the Communists, and convictions which I maintained ever since. In fact, I quit a secure job in Detroit and turned down more money in order to come to New York City and work for the Office of War Information for basically the same convictions. The whole thing is a fight against Fascism, and somebody's got to do it.

I would like to add, the Oklahoma fight was all four of these people were convicted in very short order. However, the Oklahoma State Court of Criminal Appeals reversed these convictions on virtually the same grounds on which we fought for them. I think they were exactly or more or less the same. All four of them are free at the time. Two of them are in the Army, one of them in France, and the third one, there were three men and one woman, [...] are both in the Army. [...] is in France. [...] was registered as a psycho-neurotic 4-F because he made the mistake of taking his examination in Oklahoma where the old prejudices still apparently played a dominate part in his case. Otherwise, I think he would have been in the Army for the past sixteen months. The point I was trying to make was that the Oklahoma Court of Appeals upheld the same things I was in their employment for.

/s/ Gordon E. Friesen

April 10, 1945 - I have never in my life advocated the overthrow of the U.S. Government by force and violence nor have I ever belonged to any organization advocating such. -- Gordon Friesen.

Folk Singer for the FBI: The Phil Ochs FBI File

Phil Ochs (1940-1976) was one the greatest political and topical folk singers of the 1960s, whose protest songs included "I Ain't Marching Anymore," "Links on the Chain," and "Ringing of Revolution." Ochs was first investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) early on in his career, after writing a favorable article on Woody Guthrie in Mainstream magazine in 1963. That same magazine issue brought another name to the attention of the FBI: fellow Greenwich Village folk singer Bob Dylan. The FBI attended political rallies where Ochs played, and poured over media articles to build a profile on him. Ochs began noticing the attention, referring to the FBI in his lyrics and telling an audience in 1966: "As you know, I'm a folk singer for the FBI." The FBI's investigation intensified after the riots at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago occurred in August 1968. The FBI attempted to build a case against Ochs and other members of the Youth International Party (Yippies), but the indictment against Ochs never materialized due to a lack of evidence. Ochs instead later testified at the Chicago Seven trial for the defense. Special agents now monitored his travels in person, and received updates from foreign authorities when, for example, he was arrested at a student political rally in South America. Despite the hundreds of pages in his FBI file, Ochs never committed a federal crime. He continued to be under investigation until his death by suicide in 1976.

Reviews

"This is why I love Phil Ochs." - Ethan Smith

"[A] must read as we slip down the slope towards a fascist state." - Notlobmusic

"Hard to believe and who knows what they [FBI et al.] do these days." - WICN 90.5 FM

Excerpts from the FBI File

"Mainstream" [a folk magazine] August, 1963, contains a poem entitled "Glory Bound" by Phil Ochs, and an article "The Guthrie Legacy" also by Ochs. Both the poem and the article are eulogies on folk singer and guitarist Woodie [sic] Guthrie, described as "incurably ill." Ochs does not specifically describe himself in these writings, but their content shows that he has conversed with guitarists and folk singers. The reader is drawn to conclude that Ochs himself is a guitarist and folk singer. An article on page 40 of the same issue "Mainstream" entitled "off the record" by Josh Dunson, describes Philip Ochs as a "topical song writer." NYO [New York Office] indices reflect no information concerning Philip Ochs.

On October 15, 1965, Phil Ochs, a folk singer, who at that time was appearing at the Second Fret, a night club and coffee house in Philadelphia, was observed by SAS [Special Agents] of the FBI to entertain at a "speak-out" held at City Hall, Philadelphia, Pa., sponsored by the Philadelphia Area Committee to End the War in Vietnam.

"The Worker" of January 9, 1966, page four, contained an article disclosing "Phil Ochs sang about the war" at a teach-in sponsored by the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee and Students for Peace in Vietnam, an affiliate of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held December 29, 1965, at Columbia University's McMillian Auditorium, New York City. The article stated, "The teach-in was aimed at high school students and was an attempt to organize and give expression to high school sentiment . . . on the war in Vietnam." ("The Worker" is an east coast Communist newspaper that ceased publication in July, 1968. . . .)

"The Worker" of April 11, 1967, page one, column four, indicated Phil Ochs was one of the artists scheduled to participate in the April 15, 1967, anti-Vietnam demonstration in New York City sponsored by the Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam.

The October 16, 1967, issue of "Mobilization News," published by the National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam (NMC) listed Phil Ochs as one of the entertainers who would appear at the October 21, 1967 anti-Vietnam demonstration at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.

The October 27, 1967, issue of the "Kingsman," a Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, New York, newspaper, reflected that Phil Ochs was one the folk singers who performed at the October 21, 1967, anti-Vietnam demonstration at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.

The November 23, 1967, issue of "The Village Voice," a New York City newspaper, contained an article written by Phil Ochs captioned, "Have You Heard? The War is Over!" In this article the author calls for a rally in Washington Square Park, New York City, on November 25, 1967, to declare an end to the Vietnam War.

The November 26, 1967 issue of the "New York Times," a daily New York City newspaper, contained a report of an impromptu march of several thousand persons from an anti-Vietnam rally at Times Square Park, New York City, on November 25, 1967. The article indicated, "The original idea for the anti-war demonstration started with Phil Ochs, a composer and singer, who has been called 'a troubadour of the New Left.' " The article continued, "He had organized a similar march in Los Angeles last summer and subsequently wrote a satirical song on 'the war is over' concept."

The January 22, 1966 issue of the "Newark Evening News," a Newark, New Jersey, daily newspaper, page three, reflected that Phil Ochs was one of the performing artists at the Broadway for Peace 1968 presentation at Lincoln Center, New York City, January 21, 1968, sponsored by the Congressional Peace Campaign Committee.

The February 15, 1968 issue of "Win," a publication of the War Resisters League in cooperation with the New York Workshop for Nonviolence, carried on page fifteen, an article entitled, "The Birth of the Yippies." The piece reflects the Youth International Party (YIP) was founded in New York City on January 16, 1968, by some 25 artists, writers and revolutionaries, including Phil Ochs.

The February 27, 1968 issue of the "Long Island Press," a metropolitan New York City newspaper, contained an article reporting an interview with Keith Lampe, a founder of YIP, wherein Lampe said that among those involved in creating YIP was folk singer Phil Ochs.The March 21, 1968 issue of "The Village Voice," ... on March 7, 1968, page twenty-eight, contained an article reflecting Phil Ochs would be one of the entertainers at a benefit for the National Committee for Free Elections in Mississippi on that date at the Tavern-On-The-Green in New York City.

"The Worker," of April 23, 1968, page one, column two, disclosed that Phil Ochs was one of the folk singers scheduled to appear at the April 27, 1968 anti-Vietnam demonstration in Central Park, New York City, sponsored by the Fifth Avenue Vietnam Peace Parade Committee.

On August 23, 1968, a SA [Special Agent] of the FBI observed a demonstration at the Civic Center Plaza, Chicago, Illinois, and observed approximately 50 youths where a YIP press conference was scheduled for 10:15 a.m. on that date.

At 10:20 a.m. it was observed that a live pig was brought to the Plaza by the YIP contingent which they announced was the YIP "candidate" for President of the United States. When efforts were made by the Chicago Police to bring the pig under control, 7 Yippies attempted to intervene and were arrested by the police. One of those so arrested was Phil Ochs, a white male, born December 19, 1940.

On April 5, 1969, Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation observed the GI-Civilian Anti-War Parade and Rally, and reported that at approximately 4:45 PM, Phil Ochs was introduced to the Chairman and sang a song titled "On March 10 [sic], the Battle of New Orleans---" ["I Ain't Marching Anymore"]. This was followed by another song by Ochs called "All Quiet in [sic] the Western Front."

The "New York Times," a New York City daily newspaper, in the issue of April 6, 1969, on page one contained an article captioned "Thousands March Here to Demand Vietnam Pull Out." This article stated that thousands of anti-war demonstrators marched along the Avenue of the Americas on April 5, 1969, from Bryant Park to Central Park [about five miles straight up the main commercial and entertainment strip of Manhattan] for a rally in a downpour demanding United States withdrawal from Vietnam, chanting, "Free speech for GI's." The article noted that this parade began a weekend of anti-war demonstrations here (New York City) and in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle. Informants generally familiar with [subversive] activity and associated front group activity in the area where Ochs resides advised that they have no information concerning any membership or current [subversive] activity or front group activity on the part of Ochs.

The "Daily Trojan," a campus newspaper at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, October 16, 1969, carried a photograph of Phil Ochs who had ended a year-long retirement the previous day at the University of Southern California (USC), in a benefit performance for the Vietnam Moratorium Committee. He had also appeared at three other college campuses in the Los Angeles area during the day. This was described as his first activity since the Democratic convention in Chicago.

The Vietnam Moratorium Committee has been publicly described as a national group headquartering in Washington, D.C., formed for the purpose of calling a "moratorium on business as usual" in protest of the Vietnam War.