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On April 20, 2023, 16 Oregon-based social justice organizations and a
prominent individual sent the below letter to Governor Tina Kotek asking
her to end the state's cooperation with the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task
Force.
END STATE COOPERATION WITH THE FBI'S TERRORISM TASK FORCEWe, the undersigned, call on the State of Oregon to end cooperation of any of its officers and employees with the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) and cancel the existing JTTF Memorandum of Agreement. BACKGROUND Many of the organizations signing this letter have been active in encouraging withdrawal of local government participation in federal Joint Terrorism Task Forces for many years. Some have been doing so since the year 2000 shortly after the Task Forces were first introduced. Joint Terrorism Task Forces conduct clandestine operations targeting individuals and groups without probable cause of any criminal activity. In doing so they are prone to violate state law, particularly ORS 181A.250 prohibiting law enforcement from collecting or maintaining information on people's "political, religious or social" affiliations without reasonable suspicion of criminal conduct. The FBI invites local and state law enforcement officers to join in these activities, putting the local authorities at risk of violating the law. Documents obtained by the ACLU in the 2000s showed that JTTF "disruption" actions focused on inappropriate targeting of peaceful political activity having nothing to do with terrorism. A 2013 report from the Brennan Center for Justice at the NYU School of Law pointed out "there is no mechanism geared towards ensuring compliance with state and local laws." JTTFs historically have profiled minority religious and ethnic groups even when they pose little or no threat. After 9/11, the FBI officially deemphasized white supremacist terrorism investigations and "disruptions," even though Countering Violent Extremism Task Force research evidences more people are killed annually by white supremacist terror groups than by any other U.S. group. But even a recent shift in attention by the federal government recognizing the threat by such groups does not ensure adherence to state law. OUR REQUEST ortland was the first major city in the U.S. to withdraw, followed by San Francisco and Oakland. Now it is time for Oregon to be the first state to withdraw participation. The reasons to withdraw are for accountability, separation of federal and local policing, costs, and, most importantly, respect of civil rights and privacy. Portland first withdrew its cooperation from the JTTF in 2005 due in part to JTTF involvement in the wrongful arrest of a local Muslim attorney in connection with the Madrid Spain bombing, and in part because the Police Chief and Police Commissioner are not allowed to have the same "Top Secret" clearance as the officers they oversee. After Portland re-joined the JTTF in 2011, four years later the public stopped receiving annual reports, so there was no way to know if PPB officers participated in observed violations of ORS 181A.250. San Francisco pulled out of its Joint Terrorism Task Force in February 2017 acknowledging that working with the FBI would lead to violations of state and local laws and policies. As in Portland and San Francisco, the state withdrawing participation in the JTTF would not restrict Oregon state police from working with the FBI on legitimate law enforcement investigations on a case-by-case basis. Historical FBI activity would indicate a disregard for the restrictions in ORS 181A.250 as well as Oregon's HB 2002, that prohibits police from targeting people based on race, national origin or a host of other characteristics. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a member of the JTTF, meaning Oregon's status as the first sanctuary state is threatened by Oregon state officers continuing participation in these federal Task Forces. Assaults by federal officers against Portland political protestors and members of the media on the streets of downtown Portland in 2020 show that federal law enforcement officers are not to be trusted, nor are they authorized or trained to do the kind of local policing they are trying to engage in. We further ask that the State not look to the FBI in the future for investigations about civil rights protests, as was done in 2020. The time is ripe for Oregon to be part of a national movement to protect residents and citizens from further potential civil liberties abuses. Therefore, we request that Oregon immediately withdraw the Oregon State Police participation from all federal Joint Terrorism Task Forces. Signed, Peace and Justice Works/Portland Copwatch Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon Brandon Mayfield (survivor of illegal FBI spying) Islamic Society of Greater Portland Portland JACL (Japanese American Citizens League) Veterans For Peace Chapter 72 (Portland) Veterans For Peace Linus Pauling Chapter 132 of Corvallis-Albany Albany Peace Seekers Congregation Shir Tikvah Ainsworth United Church of Christ (Portland) Jewish Voice for Peace-Portland Some Members of the Jewish Community of Portland, OR Pacific Green Party Pdx Greens Project Homeless PNW Justice Group
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Resources
JTTF campaign page
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