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.
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.
As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.
Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.
As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.
At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.
Over 80 percent of Truthout‘s funding comes from small individual donations from our community of readers, and the remaining 20 percent comes from a handful of social justice-oriented foundations. Over a third of our total budget is supported by recurring monthly donors, many of whom give because they want to help us keep Truthout barrier-free for everyone.
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