Inside man against MLK. was he a sellout ?

Famed civil rights photographer doubled as FBI informant
By Michael Calderone


Ernest Withers, a revered civil rights photographer who captured iconic images of Martin Luther King Jr. on the night King was shot in Memphis, actually played a different role the day before: FBI informant.

The Commercial Appeal, a newspaper in Memphis, just completed a two-year investigation that reveals how Withers provided the FBI with details about where King was staying and information on his meeting with black militants on April 3, 1968 — the day before the assassination.

Withers' spying, however, extends far beyond the slain civil rights leader.

The Commercial Appeal found FBI reports indicating that Withers collaborated for years with FBI agents monitoring the civil rights movement. Those FBI reports, the paper's Marc Perrusquia writes, "reveal a covert, previously unknown side of the beloved photographer."

Withers is certainly beloved in Memphis, where a namesake museum is scheduled to open next month. It remains to be seen how these new revelations may affect Withers' legacy.

The Memphis paper reports how Withers' spying assisted J. Edgar Hoover, the controversial FBI director who long covertly monitored King and others considered radicals. Withers, the paper notes, gave the bureau a "front-row seat to the civil rights and anti-war movements in Memphis." In the 1960s, he provided information on everyone from the Invaders — a militant black power group — to church leaders, politicians and business owners. Experts believe the FBI paid Withers for spying.

D'Army Bailey, a retired Memphis judge and former activist once watched by the FBI, told the paper that such covert tactics are "something you would expect in the most ruthless, totalitarian regimes."


Digging into the late Withers' past wasn't easy. The Commercial Appeal's scoop proved to be the result of shoe-leather reporting, determination and a bit of luck.


The newspaper tried unsuccessfully to obtain Withers' informant file, with the Justice Department rejecting Freedom of Information Act requests and refusing to acknowledge that such a file even exists. However, as Perrusquia writes, the government did release "369 pages related to a 1970s public corruption probe that targeted Withers -- by then a state employee who was taking payoffs -- carefully redacting references to informants -- with one notable exception."

And in those documents, the Commercial Appeal notes, the government inadvertently left a single reference to Withers' informant number, which "unlocked the secret of the photographer's 1960s political spying when the newspaper located repeated references to the number in other FBI reports released under FOIA 30 years ago."

 

The answer is HELL YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:evil:
NPR Link: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129861228&ft=1&f=

 

A sell-out of the highest degree. Fuck Ernest Withers.

 

:smt038

 

I would say a spy more than sell out.

 

He was a sell out and I will not be surprised if he knew who really killed Martin Luther King Jr.

 

they said the government had to have MLK put down, because he was becoming too popular (dangerous)

this guy was a very powerful man...and he just happened to be black.

people listened to him and loved his progressive ideals..he was like the opposite of Hitler, in that he loved all of humanity and didn't care who knew it. I truly wish he was still alive. No one has graced our people with as much hope, charisma, and ambition as he did. Before Obama, there was Dr King, uniting all the races under one banner...the HUMAN race

 

There has to be a connection between those three assassinations. JFK, MLK Jr, RFK. It is absurd to see something like that happen and no plan at all.


I'm not saying J. edgar hoover is behind it but I would not be surprised. I think the evidence of what really happen is somewhere but you would have to look hard to find it and have a massive amount of power.`

 

I'm beginning to wonder about the agenda of some of you. It was the CIA who killed Martin Luther King, Jr. This is old news - as it was disclosed to former Attorney General Janet Reno - and subsequently buried.

 

Could I get some proof?

 

Couldn't have said it any better.

I co-sign fuck Withers, all his intentions were not capturing a social/histroical phenomenon, he was a double edge sword...dangerous to both sides, for that, his reputation shall forever be tarnished in the eyes of the people.

 

remember racism against us, was institutionalized and accepted, in all forms of American society, from the military to the governments. It would not surprise me if members of the government wanted King dead, to keep the Negro stupid and oppressed. The fear was if we were not oppressed and educated, we would seek retaliation against them. Hell, you see that mindset in some people today. They think the white race is 'losing' America, because of the gradual gains being made by African-Americans in all levels of the country. It's mind-boggling to see 'slaves' with so much authority and presence.

 

Whiters belongs in the same company with other judasgoats i.e. William Penncel, Clarence Thomas, Ward Connorelly, Julius Carlos Butler, William O'Neil, Eunice Rivers, Roy Innis, Nigers and others sambos that soldout the race...

 

He may be worst than all of them, I doubt he was just an informant I am certain that he planted devices, gave false accounts and worked within to destroy the movement. Counter-intelligence activities lead to the assassination of Fred Hampton and several other black leaders.

 

BC3K5,you just called out the relatives and friends of Uncle Rukus.

 

You have to keep in mind that the MAJORITY of blacks were not down with the civil rights moment. Many of "US" thought it would only make things worse, not better. Many blacks marched and protested but still many more sat around and watched in happen.

 

That is true.

 

This guy is the tip of the iceberg.

The new Black panther party was started by the FBI.

 

yeah I can dig that. Im sure when they look back on the shit they regret it. I can understand why they felt that way. think about it .... if you been beat down sooo long you end up losing hope. sometimes you get beat down soooo bad you lose fight in you. sometimes you get beat sooo bad you get tired of it and fight till the death. so I cant fault them for not fighting...they were scared for their kids not themselves.

 

You also have to keep in mind that when slavery ended, there were many blacks who decided to stay behind on the plantation for reasons unknown to many.