Most Americans know that J. Edgar Hoover violated the civil rights of many of our citizens, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. One way to assure that such abuses of power do not continue to occur is for our government to take action, no matter how belated, against all perpetrators.
I have written to President Obama asking that he, by executive order, have J. Edgar Hoover’s name immediately removed from the FBI building, all FBI stationery and any other address references (printed and online) for the FBI office building.
This action will make it clear to current and future federal employees and elected officials who violate our public trust, and the Constitution of the United States, that they will be held accountable, even after death. Our public servants will understand that their legacy, reputation and place in history can and will be harmed by abuses of power and violations of our laws.
At this time in our nation’s history, sending this strong message to current and future government officials is more important than ever.
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We’ve borne witness to a chaotic first few months in Trump’s presidency.
Over the last months, each executive order has delivered shock and bewilderment — a core part of a strategy to make the right-wing turn feel inevitable and overwhelming. But, as organizer Sandra Avalos implored us to remember in Truthout last November, “Together, we are more powerful than Trump.”
Indeed, the Trump administration is pushing through executive orders, but — as we’ve reported at Truthout — many are in legal limbo and face court challenges from unions and civil rights groups. Efforts to quash anti-racist teaching and DEI programs are stalled by education faculty, staff, and students refusing to comply. And communities across the country are coming together to raise the alarm on ICE raids, inform neighbors of their civil rights, and protect each other in moving shows of solidarity.
It will be a long fight ahead. And as nonprofit movement media, Truthout plans to be there documenting and uplifting resistance.
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