2 March 2000
Source: http://www.usia.gov/cgi-bin/washfile/display.pl?p=/products/washfile/latest&f=00030209.wlt&t=/products/washfile/newsitem.shtml


US Department of State
International Information Programs

Washington File
_________________________________

02 March 2000

FBI Adds New Subjects to Electronic Reading Room

      (Electronic versions of files on spies, politicians, authors) (2140)

      Suspected spies, gangsters, politicians, authors, and a group of
      student activists from the 1960s are among the latest subjects added
      to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Freedom of Information Act
      (FOIA) Electronic Reading Room, according to a February 25 FBI news
      release.

      These documents had been available in paper format for several years
      and now can be accessed electronically, the release said.

      Among the latest subjects for which investigative information is now
      available electronically:

      -- American POWs/MIAs in Southeast Asia 

      -- Nathan Silvermaster, leader of a post-World War II Soviet espionage
      ring.

      -- Ernst Franz Sedwick (Putzi) Hanfstangl aka Ernest Sedgwick, an
      author and intimate friend of Adolph Hitler who served as Hitler's
      Nazi Press Chief.
       
      -- Carlo Tresca, Italian political refugee and author who organized
      labor strikes across the United States through the International
      Workers of the World (IWW) beginning in 1912.

      -- Al Capone, the notorious gangster who conducted his illegal
      enterprises in Chicago during the 1920's.

      -- The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), which was
      created in 1960 as a nonviolent civil rights movement primarily
      devoted to voter-registration campaigns in the South.

      -- Thomas Mann, German author, Nobel Prize winner in literature, and
      naturalized American citizen.

      -- Abbie Hoffman, 1960s and 70s activist, anarchist, and co-founder of
      the Youth International Party (YIP a.k.a. Yippies) and one of the
      "Chicago Seven."
       
      -- Dr. Wilhelm Reich, a German immigrant who described himself as the
      Associate Professor of Medical Psychology, Director of the Orgone
      Institute.

      The index to the paper format documents in the FOIA Reading Room is
      now available at the FBI's web site and, as additional documents are
      converted to an electronic format, they will be added to the
      Electronic Reading Room. Viewers may select records at
      http://www.fbi.gov.

      Following is the text of the FBI press release:

      (begin text)

      Federal Bureau of Investigation 
      Washington D.C.
      February 25, 2000

      The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced today that it has added
      several new subject matters to the Historical Interest, Famous
      Persons, Espionage, and Gangster Era categories of its Freedom of
      Information Act (FOIA) Electronic Reading Room. The subjects listed
      below have been available in paper format for several years and now
      can be accessed electronically:

      HISTORICAL INTEREST

      -- American POWs/MIAs in Southeast Asia -- 4,888 pages

      In 1970-1973 the FBI investigated the Committee of Liaison with
      Families of Servicemen Detained in North Vietnam (COLIFAM), a U.S.
      antiwar group acting as "liaison" between POWs and their families. The
      group was alleged to be a vehicle of North Vietnamese propaganda whose
      activities were believed to be detrimental to the health and welfare
      of the prisoners held in North Vietnam. No information was developed
      warranting prosecution of COLIFAM for solicitation under the Foreign
      Agents Registration Act. In 1982, the FBI compiled information
      concerning American prisoners of war or American citizens in Viet Nam.
      In 1992, the FBI provided assistance to the Senate Select Committee on
      POW/MIA Affairs by furnishing information and/or performing
      investigations on behalf of the Committee on all facets of POW issues.

      -- Moorish Science Temple of America -- 3,117 pages

      The Moorish Science Temple of America was organized in 1913 in Newark,
      New Jersey. The Temple was investigated in 1953 for violation of the
      Selective Service Act of 1948 and sedition. Some members of the
      organization claimed to be conscientious objectors but professed they
      were not pacifists. In September of 1953, the Department of Justice
      concluded that prosecution for violation of the Selective Service Act
      was not warranted as the group's conscientious objectors did not evade
      service other than by a right granted under provisions in the Act. No
      sedition statutes were violated because subjects' actions were not
      directed toward members of the armed forces of the U.S. A 1940
      investigation was conducted to determine if the Moorish Science Temple
      of America was committing subversive activities by adhering to and
      spreading Japanese propaganda. The investigation failed to
      substantiate that members were pro-Japanese in their attitude.

      -- Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee -- 2,887 pages

      The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee was created in 1960 as a
      nonviolent civil rights movement primarily devoted to direct-action,
      voter-registration campaigns in the South. Investigation was opened in
      1964 to establish the extent of communist infiltration in the SNCC.
      Several leaders and members of SNCC had been identified as communists
      in public hearings of the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
      SNCC was determined to be extensively communist dominated. In 1966,
      Stokely Carmichael emerged as SNCC national chairman. In 1968, SNCC
      merged with the Black Panther Party and, in 1969, the name was changed
      to Student National Coordinating Committee. Not long thereafter the
      organization ceased to exist.

      -- Ernst Franz Sedwick (Putzi) Hanfstangl aka Ernest Sedgwick -- 122
      pages

      Ernst Franz Sedwick Hanfstangl, was an author and intimate friend of
      Adolph Hitler who served as Hitler's Nazi Press Chief. Hanfstangl fled
      Germany for England in 1937 and was interned by the British as a
      German alien enemy and sent to Canada for confinement. In 1938, the
      FBI noted that Hanfstangl possibly had been connected with the Black
      Tom and Kingsland explosions. In 1942 he was paroled to the President
      of the U.S. and placed under the care of Presidential Assistant J.
      Franklin Carter. Hanfstangl was to make his knowledge of Nazi Germany
      available to the Office of Strategic Services and other branches of
      the Government. The FBI never interviewed Hanfstangl or knew of his
      exact whereabouts in the U.S.

      -- Carlo Tresca -- 1,358 pages

      Carlo Tresca, Italian political refugee, agitator, author, and editor,
      organized labor strikes across the U.S. through the International
      Workers of the World beginning in 1912. Tresca published an Italian
      American newspaper "Il Martillo" (The Hammer) in which he criticized
      both communists and fascists. In 1922, an investigation of Tresca was
      initiated to determine the status of his U.S. citizenship, as well as
      his publication of an alleged obscene article in his newspaper. A
      security investigation was initiated in 1941 for violation of the
      Neutrality and Registration Acts. Tresca was murdered upon leaving his
      office on January 11, 1943. The murder remains unsolved by the New
      York Police Department.

      FAMOUS PERSONS

      -- Hugo Black -- 156 pages

      Hugo Black was a U.S. Senator from 1927 to 1937 and was appointed
      Associate Supreme Court Justice in 1937 by President Roosevelt. He
      resigned from the Supreme Court in 1971 shortly before his death. In
      1949 information was developed alleging Black's membership in the Ku
      Klux Klan of Clay County, Alabama. Records contain several threats
      against the life of Black, cordial correspondence with the FBI and
      numerous newspaper articles critical of Black's liberal
      actions/decisions as Senator and later as Supreme Court Justice.

      -- Abbie (Abbott) Hoffman -- 4,101 pages

      Abbie Hoffman, 1960s and 70s activist, anarchist, was co-founder of
      the Youth International Party (YIP a.k.a. Yippies) and one of the
      "Chicago Seven". He was the subject of a security investigation in
      1968 in view of his anarchist actions, as well as an anti-riot law
      investigation as a result of his leadership in disturbances at the
      1968 Democratic National Convention (DEMCON) in Chicago. The cases
      were closed in 1973 upon the final judgment of the "Chicago Seven"
      trial. The trial case was dismissed at the request of the Government
      in January, 1973, after the U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit,
      Chicago, Illinois, reversed the convictions and remanded the case back
      to the U.S. District Court, Chicago, for a new trial if the Government
      so desired . The "Chicago Seven" was the term used for the seven
      leaders tried for violations of anti-riot laws stemming from the
      DEMCON demonstrations.

      -- Thomas Mann -- 95 pages

      Thomas Mann, German author, Nobel prize winner in literature and
      naturalized American citizen, was investigated from 1927 through 1955.
      The security investigation gathered information showing Mann's
      affiliation with communist causes and associates. Mann wrote magazine
      articles for an anti-Nazi magazine which was published by German
      communists.

      -- Nelson Rockefeller -- 1,592 pages

      Nelson Rockefeller, Medal of Freedom winner, 1977; Vice-President to
      President Gerald Ford, 1974 - 1977; and Governor of New York State
      1959 -1973, was investigated in 1950 and 1969 for suitability to fill
      presidential appointments and again in 1974 to perform the duties of
      Vice-President. The FBI investigated numerous threats against the life
      of Rockefeller as Governor, Presidential Candidate, and
      Vice-President. Records also include personal correspondence between
      Rockefeller and the FBI demonstrating his affable relationship with
      the FBI, newspaper articles chronicling various aspects of
      Rockefeller's life, and documents in which his name was merely
      mentioned.

      -- Dr. Wilhelm Reich -- 789 pages

      This German immigrant described himself as the Associate Professor of
      Medical Psychology, Director of the Orgone Institute, President and
      research physician of the Wilhelm Reich Foundation and discoverer of
      the biological or life energy. A 1940 security investigation was begun
      to determine the extent of Reich's communist commitments. A board of
      Alien Enemy Hearing judged that Dr. Reich was not a threat to the
      security of the U.S. In 1947, a security investigation concluded that
      neither the Orgone Project nor any of its staff were engaged in
      subversive activities or were in violation of any statute within the
      jurisdiction of the FBI. The Orgone Institute, founded by Dr. Reich,
      claimed that "orgone energy" would prevent and cure a variety of
      serious diseases, including cancer. In 1954 the U.S. Attorney General
      filed a complaint seeking permanent injunction to prevent interstate
      shipment of devices and literature put out by Dr. Reich's group. That
      same year Dr. Reich was arrested for contempt of court for violation
      of the Attorney General's injunction. Dr. Reich died in a Federal
      Prison in 1957 while serving a 2 year sentence for contempt of court.

      -- Muriel Rukeyser -- 118 pages

      Muriel Rukeyser, author, poet and editorial free lance writer, came to
      the attention of the FBI when a background investigation for
      suitability was initiated in 1943 in conjunction with her government
      employment as copywriter with the Office for Emergency Management. The
      investigation terminated when she resigned from the position a few
      months later. A security investigation into Rukeyser's communist
      activities started as the suitability investigation ended.
      Investigation determined that Rukeyser sponsored or was a member of
      numerous organizations which were cited by the Attorney General or
      House Committee on Un-American Activities as communist front
      organizations. Louis F. Budenz testified in 1951 that Rukeyser was a
      concealed Communist Party member.

      ESPIONAGE

      -- Nathan Silvermaster Group -- 1,951 pages

      Nathan Silvermaster was a leader of a Soviet espionage ring. This
      espionage investigation from 1945 to 1959 uncovered Soviet placed
      agents working within the U.S. Government. The case - titled Gregory,
      using the middle name of Silvermaster - exposed 27 individuals in the
      Silvermaster ring who gathered information from at least six Federal
      agencies to turn over to the Soviets. No indictments for espionage
      were returned against any subjects in the Gregory case by any Grand
      Jury; however, a Grand Jury did return an indictment against Alger
      Hiss for perjury.

      GANGSTER ERA

      -- Al (Alphonse) Capone -- 2,397 pages

      Al Capone was a notorious gangster who conducted his illegal
      enterprises in Chicago, Illinois during the 1920s. Many of the
      activities ascribed to the "Capone Gang" were not violations of
      Federal law within the FBI's investigative jurisdiction. In 1929, the
      FBI was ordered by the Attorney General to investigate the legitimacy
      of an affidavit that petitioned for a postponement of Capone's
      appearance in response to a Federal Grand Jury subpoena. The
      investigation established that facts within the affidavit were indeed
      false. Capone was tried and convicted of contempt of court on February
      25, 1931. When Capone was convicted for income tax evasion, the Judge
      ruled that the sentence for contempt of court should be served
      concurrently with the tax evasion sentence. Capone served his prison
      sentence from 1931 to 1939. Capone was in poor health following his
      release from prison and died in 1947 at home in Florida.

      -------------

      These documents have been converted to an electronic format from paper
      copies housed in the FOIA Reading Room located at FBI Headquarters.
      Portions have been blacked out to protect personal privacy,
      confidential sources, national security, etc., in accordance with the
      exemption provisions of the FOIA. The index to the paper format
      documents in the FOIA Reading Room is now available at the FBI's
      website and, as additional documents are converted to an electronic
      format, they will be added to the Electronic Reading Room.

      Viewers may select records from the categories of historical interest,
      famous persons, espionage, violent crime, gangster era, or unusual
      phenomena at http://www.fbi.gov.

      (end text)
      (Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
      Department of State)