November 17, 2023

FBI attempts to question Chicago international solidarity activists. Don’t talk to FBI!

FBI attempts to question Chicago international solidarity activists. Don’t talk to FBI!

On November 15, three FBI agents came to the Chicago home of an international solidarity activist in Chicago who had traveled to Venezuela. The activist wasn’t home, but the agent in charge gave the landlord his card. He asked to be let into the building, but the landlord refused and instead reported the visit to the tenant.

The activist called the People’s Law Office, a well-known legal collective that defends political activists targeted by repression. The People’s Law Office attorney learned that the FBI claims to be conducting an investigation, that the activist, who the FBI would like to question, is not a target, and that it may involve a person, entity or trend (political/ideological) that FBI claims to have concerns about.

The Committee to Stop FBI Repression (CSFR) and the US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) do not know exactly what this FBI investigation is about. We do know this: the FBI is the political police for the ruling class, and it is constantly threatening our movement.

The international solidarity activist in Chicago who reported this to us did everything right -- they refused to talk to the agents; they contacted a movement attorney; they contacted CSFR; and they went public to warn other activists to be aware.

To sum it up, the lesson of this story is, “Don’t Talk to the FBI!”

For more resources and Know Your Rights information, go to https://www.nlg.org/know-your-rights/

-- Committee to Stop FBI Repression

-- US Palestinian Community Network