</s>File #: 62-HQ-116395 Serial Scope: 951-953,954-943,963,964,96-95-971 Released under the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 992 (44 USC 2107 Note) Case(RV) 8914 Dale: 03.18.2026 PONO: DESTRIC 7 FOLPAE: M.P.A.R. NW-8861-D0C1-D01E1-228969673-Page-1

Summary  
The documents detail FBI internal communications, surveillance operations, and administrative records related to investigations into civil rights leaders, communist infiltration of organizations, and counterintelligence activities. Key topics include FBI monitoring of Martin Luther King Jr., Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) activities, and interactions with federal agencies such as the Department of Justice and Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities (SSC). The content spans 1959–1975 and includes discussions about mail interception programs, surveillance protocols, and legal challenges to FBI operations. References to "JFK Law 10(a)(11)" appear in document headers but are not directly tied to the assassination investigation. The materials also reference internal FBI memos, field office reports, and administrative procedures for handling sensitive information.  

Key People  
- Martin Luther King Jr.  
- J. Edgar Hoover (FBI Director)  
- William C. Sullivan (FBI official)  
- John T. Elliff (Director of Domestic Intelligence Task Force)  
- Michael E. Shaheen, Jr. (Special Counsel for Intelligence Coordination)  
- Burke Marshall (Assistant Attorney General)  
- Robert F. Kennedy (Attorney General)  
- Stanley Levison (secret Communist Party member)  
- Hunter Pitts O'Dell (alleged Communist Party member)  

Key Locations  
- Washington, D.C. (FBI headquarters, Senate Select Committee meetings)  
- Atlanta, Georgia (SCLC headquarters, FBI field office)  
- New York City (FBI field office, SCLC operations)  
- Birmingham, Alabama (IRS and FBI offices)  
- Fort George G. Meade, Maryland (NSA headquarters)  

Key Events  
- FBI surveillance of Martin Luther King Jr., including electronic and physical monitoring of his residences and associates.  
- Investigations into alleged communist infiltration of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and other civil rights organizations.  
- Internal FBI debates on legal authority for phone tapping, mail interception, and surveillance of domestic entities.  
- Senate Select Committee requests for declassified materials related to FBI counterintelligence operations and domestic security activities.  
- Legal disputes over authorization of FBI activities, including lack of attorney general approval for certain surveillance initiatives.  
- Administrative reviews of document classification and disclosure protocols for sensitive intelligence materials.  

Key Organizations  
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)  
- U.S. Department of Justice  
- Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities (SSC)  
- Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)  
- Communist Party, USA  
- National Security Agency (NSA)  
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS)  
- Black Panther Party (BPP)

Summary  
The documents contain a collection of FBI, CIA, and Department of Justice records detailing surveillance operations, intelligence activities, and administrative procedures related to political groups, individuals suspected of Communist affiliations, and civil rights organizations during the 1960s–1970s. Key topics include FBI monitoring under Project Hunter (Bureau Informant 200), COINTELPRO operations targeting activists like Angela Davis, Jane Fonda, and Ralph Abernathy, and investigations into Communist Party USA (CPUSA) ties with civil rights groups such as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). References to John F. Kennedy appear in a memorandum dated August 18, 1961, concerning a petition for the release of Carl Braden, a civil rights activist facing legal charges. The documents also reference redacted social security numbers (SSNs) and administrative notes on document classification and disclosure restrictions.  

Key People  
- **John F. Kennedy**: Mentioned in an August 18, 1961, memorandum regarding a petition for the release of Carl Braden; no direct connection to assassination investigation.  
- **Leonard Bernstein**: Monitored by FBI and CIA for alleged Communist ties, including associations with USSR Embassy officials and cultural exchange programs.  
- **Dr. Derk Bodde**: Professor at University of Pennsylvania, linked to Communist Party front groups, monitored for travel to the Soviet Union and advocacy for Chinese communist regime.  
- **Angela Davis**: Investigated by FBI for Communist affiliations, membership in LASNCO and SCDCP, and alleged involvement in 1967 shotgun purchase incident.  
- **Ralph Abernathy**: SCLC leader, former Army soldier, surveilled for Communist ties and civil rights activities; planned global peace trip in January 1968.  
- **Jane Fonda**: Mentioned in FBI records as associated with anti-war movements and draft resistance; investigated for connections to subversive networks.  
- **Gus Hall**: CPUSA General Secretary, linked to W.E.B. Du Bois Clubs of America (DCA) and other organizations.  
- **Ben Davis, Jack Stachel**: Identified as individuals who described Bernstein as a Communist Party member in the 1940s.  
- **Robert Steven Greenblatt, Prudence Glass**: Activists associated with radical groups and planning to join underground activities in Georgia.  

Key Locations  
- **Washington, D.C.**: FBI headquarters, USSR Embassy, and locations of Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSC) interactions.  
- **Philadelphia, Pennsylvania**: Dr. Derk Bodde’s residence and employment at University of Pennsylvania.  
- **Los Angeles, California**: SCLC headquarters, SNCC operations, First Unitarian Church, and residences of Abernathy and Davis.  
- **San Francisco, California**: DCA founding convention (June 19–21, 1964) and references to FBI offices.  
- **New York City**: Cultural exchange programs and political group activities.  
- **Soviet Union**: Bodde’s travel destination in July 1960.  
- **Birmingham, Alabama**: Health records review for Angela Davis and Abernathy’s birthplace.  

Key Events  
- **Project Hunter (Bureau Informant 200)**: FBI surveillance of anti-war groups, Communist front organizations, and individuals like Bernstein, Bodde, and Davis from the 1960s–1973.  
- **COINTELPRO operations**: FBI targeting political activists, including Angela Davis, Jane Fonda, Ralph Abernathy, and members of the Institute for Policy Studies.  
- **August 18, 1961**: Delegation petitioned President John F. Kennedy to free Carl Braden, a civil rights activist facing contempt charges.  
- **May 30, 1968**: Planning for a demonstration expected to draw 300,000 participants; coordination with SCLC and civil rights leaders.  
- **November 17, 1964**: Travel arrangements for Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and SCLC members to Oslo, Norway, for the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony.  
- **1967–1968**: FBI investigations into SNCC members’ weapons possession arrests and Communist infiltration of civil rights organizations.  
- **Administrative actions**: Document classification restrictions, excisions (e.g., Tampa Excision, Chicago Excision), and SSC requests for FBI records on intelligence activities.  

Key Organizations  
- **Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)**: Conducted surveillance under Project Hunter, COINTELPRO, and Hunter Mail; maintained files on Bernstein, Bodde, Davis, and others.  
- **Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)**: Involved in monitoring defectors, subversive networks, and cultural exchange programs linked to Bernstein.  
- **Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)**: Central to civil rights efforts; investigated for Communist ties with Abernathy, Stanley Levison, and others.  
- **Communist Party, USA (CPUSA)**: Linked to SCLC members, National Lawyers Guild, Gandhi Society for Human Rights, and W.E.B. Du Bois Clubs of America (DCA).  
- **National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam**: Mentioned as a group with Communist Party members and sponsors.  
- **W.E.B. Du Bois Clubs of Chicago (DCC) and America (DCA)**: Founded in 1964, chartered by CPUSA; DCA adopted its name at a 1964 convention in San Francisco.  
- **National Lawyers Guild**: Cited as a Communist front for defending CPUSA members.  
- **Gandhi Society for Human Rights**: Non-violent civil rights organization providing legal assistance but not engaging in legislative advocacy.  
- **Southern Conference Educational Fund (SCSF)**: Described as a communist front with historical ties to CPUSA, including connections to Claude Lightfoot.

JFK Declassified Files

124-10264-10208_multirif.pdf

Document Summary

Try AI Search