He described the party as Marxist-Leninist in ideology, accusing its members of assaulting police officers across the country and spreading what he called a message of hate and violence to communities and students nationwide.
Panther Minister of Defense Huey Newton had been convicted in 1968 for fatally shooting an Oakland police officer, while co-founder Bobby Seale was among eight people indicted on federal riot-incitement charges stemming from the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Here’s a rundown of the illegal and highly controversial things J. Edgar Hoover did during his nearly 50-year tenure as FBI Director:
Illegal Surveillance & Wiretapping
∙ Ordered warrantless wiretaps on thousands of Americans, including Supreme Court justices, members of Congress, and presidents — often without legal authorization
∙ Bugged Martin Luther King Jr.’s hotel rooms, phones, and the SCLC offices for years
∙ Conducted illegal break-ins (“black bag jobs”) at homes and offices to plant bugs or steal documents
COINTELPRO (1956–1971)
∙ Ran a covert, illegal program to surveil, infiltrate, discredit, and disrupt domestic political organizations
∙ Targeted civil rights groups, socialist and communist organizations, the Black Panther Party, antiwar groups, and even the KKK
∙ Used forged letters, planted informants, and manufactured evidence to destroy reputations and incite internal conflict
∙ Sent an anonymous letter to MLK encouraging him to commit suicide before he received the Nobel Peace Prize
Blackmail & Extortion
∙ Maintained secret files on the sexual behavior, personal secrets, and political activities of presidents, senators, and public figures — and used them as leverage to keep his job and crush enemies
∙ Blackmailed Presidents Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon to maintain his power
Abuse of FBI Resources
∙ Used FBI agents as personal servants — having them do his landscaping, build a fishpond at his home, and perform personal errands on government time
∙ Had agents ghost-write books published under his name, including Masters of Deceit, keeping the royalties himself (a likely misuse of government resources)
Targeting Civil Rights Leaders
∙ Tried to destroy MLK’s reputation by sending recordings of alleged affairs to his wife and to media outlets
∙ Labeled civil rights leaders as communist threats without legal basis, using this framing to justify illegal surveillance
Obstruction & Evidence Manipulation
∙ Destroyed evidence and manipulated investigations to protect allies or harm enemies
∙ It is widely believed he destroyed documents related to JFK’s assassination in the days after the killing
Violating Constitutional Rights
∙ Systematically violated First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendment rights of American citizens on a massive scale for decades
Hoover was largely untouchable during his lifetime because of the blackmail files he held. Much of what he did only came to light after his death in 1972 and through later congressional investigations, particularly the Church Committee hearings in 1975.
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