Free the San Francisco Eight!

On June 8, hundreds of supporters of the San Francisco Eight took to the street in front of the San Francisco County Courthouse demanding that all charges be dropped. Chanting slogans such as “Free the SF Eight” and “Drop the charges,” the community made it very clear that they will not allow the persecution of these men to go forward without a struggle.

Maisha Quint, Committee to Free the SF 8 and Soffiyah Elijah, attorney for SF 8 among SF 8 defendants

The eight were arrested in California, New York and Florida Jan. 23, 2007, on charges related to the September 1971 killing of police sergeant John V. Young in San Francisco’s Ingleside Station. Seven of the accused are former Black Panther Party members.

The case, which has garnered national attention, has again raised issues of police abuse and the role of the FBI’s Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO) during the 1960s and 1970s. COINTELPRO was aimed at disrupting and dismantling political organizations, such as the Black Panther Party. COINTELPRO officially existed from 1956 to 1971, but in reality its tactics and goals continue to this day.

Eric Mar, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and present at the rally, introduced a resolution June 9 to the entire Board of Supervisors calling on the California attorney general to “Drop the charges.” Mar called the San Francisco Eight case “COINTELPRO 2009,” also referring to the FBI counter-intelligence program carried out with assistance from local police agencies.

Soffiyah Elijah, one of the lawyers for the eight, thanked the community for coming out in support and announced after a day of closed hearings that the preliminary hearing would begin July 6. The hearing is expected to last weeks, and will determine if there is enough “evidence” to hold the men for trial.

The defense states that the men are innocent, that they cannot get a fair trial because too much time has passed, and that there is no new evidence. Moreover, the prosecution’s case allegedly relies on statements made by three of the men under torture.

In fact, the original charges were dropped in 1973, once evidence surfaced that the police tortured the men to obtain confessions. New Orleans police used electric shock, cattle prods, beatings, sensory deprivation, and wet blankets to threaten asphyxiation.

This case again demonstrates the ongoing racist efforts by the state to stamp out political dissent and political organizing, especially among African Americans and other oppressed minorities.

Free the San Francisco Eight!