</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 extensive FBI investigations into civil rights leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., and their alleged ties to communist organizations such as the Communist Party USA (CPUSA). These include surveillance operations targeting the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), monitoring of MLK’s activities, and internal FBI directives on handling "racial matters" and counterintelligence efforts. The FBI conducted mail interception programs, informant networks, and surveillance of individuals like Hunter Pitts O’Dell and Stanley Levison, who were identified as CPUSA members. Legal and administrative challenges arose in cooperating with congressional committees, including delays in document delivery and debates over the legality of surveillance techniques. The FBI also investigated financial activities of hate groups like the United Klans of America (UKA) and coordinated with agencies such as the Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service (IRS). No direct references to John F. Kennedy’s assassination or related investigations are present in these materials.  

Key People  
- **Martin Luther King Jr.**: Central figure under FBI surveillance, monitored for alleged communist ties and associations with SCLC.  
- **J. Edgar Hoover**: FBI Director overseeing counterintelligence operations against civil rights leaders and communist infiltration.  
- **Burke Marshall**: Assistant Attorney General involved in reviewing FBI materials on MLK’s associates.  
- **Stanley Levison**: Identified as a secret CPUSA member who advised King on civil rights strategies.  
- **Hunter Pitts O’Dell**: Alleged CPUSA member associated with SCLC; investigated for financial ties to the organization.  
- **William C. Sullivan**: FBI official involved in surveillance and counterintelligence operations.  
- **Robert F. Kennedy**: Attorney General who received directives on informing King about MLK’s associates’ alleged communist affiliations.  

Key Locations  
- **Atlanta, Georgia**: SCLC headquarters; site of FBI surveillance and financial investigations.  
- **Washington, D.C.**: FBI Headquarters; location of congressional committee interactions and legal reviews.  
- **New York City**: SCLC offices; site of financial transactions and informant activities.  
- **Birmingham, Alabama**: FBI field office involved in UKA investigations.  
- **Tuscaloosa, Alabama**: Shelton’s residence and UKA headquarters.  

Key Events  
- **1962–1964**: FBI surveillance of MLK, SCLC, and CPUSA infiltration efforts; internal directives on handling "racial matters."  
- **July 1963**: FBI advised Attorney General Kennedy to inform King about O’Dell’s and Levison’s alleged communist ties.  
- **1963–1965**: IRS and FBI audits of UKA finances, including Shelton’s tax evasion allegations.  
- **1964**: Hoover’s off-the-record statements to the Rooney Committee on communist influence in civil rights movements.  
- **1965**: FBI reinstated "Sam Survey" program for detecting Soviet agents; legal debates over mail interception legality.  

Key Organizations  
- **Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)**: Conducted surveillance, counterintelligence operations, and coordinated with DOJ and IRS.  
- **Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)**: Investigated for communist infiltration; subject to FBI monitoring.  
- **Communist Party USA (CPUSA)**: Target of FBI investigations into alleged influence over civil rights leaders.  
- **Department of Justice (DOJ)**: Oversaw internal security reviews and legal considerations for surveillance programs.  
- **Internal Revenue Service (IRS)**: Involved in financial audits of hate groups like the UKA.  
- **Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities (SSC)**: Requested FBI materials on civil rights investigations.

Summary  
The documents detail a range of FBI and CIA surveillance activities targeting leftist groups, civil rights activists, and individuals associated with anti-war movements during the 1960s. These include monitoring of organizations such as the National Hobilitization Committee (NMC), its predecessor the November 8th Ad Hoc Committee (NHC), and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). The FBI conducted mail intercept operations, maintained watch lists like the Hunter Mail and Hunter Hall lists, and engaged in COINTELPRO counterintelligence efforts. References to John F. Kennedy appear in a memo noting a "deceased by the Secretary of State" and an unspecified document linked to his name, though no direct connection to the assassination is established. The records also reference investigations into figures like Dr. Derk Bodde, Leonard Bernstein, Angela Davis, and Ralph Abernathy, with some materials reviewed by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities (SSC).  

Key People  
- John F. Kennedy (mentioned in a memo referencing a deceased individual and an unspecified document)  
- Dr. Derk Bodde (surveilled for Communist Party ties and travel to USSR)  
- Leonard Bernstein (monitored for Soviet-linked activities and affiliations with leftist groups)  
- Angela Yvonne Davis (investigated for Communist Party membership and associations with SCDP/LASNCO)  
- Ralph David Abernathy (civil rights leader monitored by FBI for potential Communist ties)  
- Gus Hall (CPUSA General Secretary, referenced in connection to youth organizations)  
- Frank Church (Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities)  
- Michael E. Shaheen, Jr. (Special Counsel for Intelligence Coordination)  
- James L. Abernathy (SCLC leader involved in planning demonstrations and meetings with civil rights figures)  

Key Locations  
- Washington, D.C. (FBI headquarters, SSC access location)  
- Los Angeles, California (surveillance of NMC/NHC, Angela Davis’s residences)  
- San Francisco, Miami, Los Angeles (FBI SAC offices)  
- Birmingham, Alabama (Jefferson County Board of Health records, Abernathy’s early career)  
- New York City (National Guardian publication, FBI surveillance activities)  
- Moscow, USSR (Dr. Bodde’s travel and academic connections)  

Key Events  
- Monitoring of the National Hobilitization Committee (NMC) and its predecessor, the November 8th Ad Hoc Committee (NHC), via the Hunter Mail project (1966–1969).  
- FBI surveillance of Dr. Derk Bodde’s activities, including travel to the USSR in 1960.  
- Investigation into Leonard Bernstein’s ties to Soviet entities and cultural exchanges.  
- FBI monitoring of Angela Davis’s associations with the Southern California District Communist Party (SCDP) and Los Angeles Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (LASNCO).  
- COINTELPRO operations targeting civil rights activists, including Ralph Abernathy and SCLC members.  
- Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities (SSC) requests for FBI records on surveillance activities and watch lists.  
- Reference to a 1961 request by Southern integration leaders to President John F. Kennedy to intervene in Carl Braden’s legal case.  

Key Organizations  
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)  
- Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)  
- Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities (SSC)  
- Communist Party, USA (CPUSA)  
- National Hobilitization Committee to End the War in Vietnam (NMC)  
- Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)  
- Council of African Affairs (designated as a Communist front)  
- National Negro Congress (linked to Bernstein’s activities)  
- National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam (sponsored by Communist Party members)  
- House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)  
- American Council of Learned Societies  
- Institute for Policy Studies  
- Gandhi Society for Human Rights  
- Southern Conference Educational Fund (SCED)  
- W.E.B. Du Bois Clubs of Chicago (DCC) and America (DCA)

JFK Declassified Files

124-10264-10209_multirif.pdf

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