From the Watson Institute comes another well-research paper on the dangers of smearing activists with terrorism… this applies to environmental, animal rights activists all the way to people protesting Apartheid Israel. The entire paper can be found here - https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/files/cow/imce/papers/2023/Cop%20City%20and%20Terrorism_.pdf
Why Media Conflation of Activism with Terrorism has Dire Consequences: The Case of Cop City
Summary
Deepa Kumar1
With Research Assistance by Mimi Healy
November 7, 2023
The aftermath of 9/11 witnessed the emergence of new laws and policies designed to police individuals regarded as "terrorists." While the popular perception of terrorism centered around Arabs, Muslims, and those who “look Muslim,” the U.S. national security apparatus quietly broadened its definition of terrorism to include peace activists, environmental justice activists, animal rights activists, Black Lives Matter activists and others. Counterterrorism resources have been used to infiltrate political organizations that “criticize business interests and government policies," according to the ACLU, despite a lack of evidence that the groups were either engaged in or intended to use violent action.2 For instance, anti-terrorism training was given to police officers in the lead up to the protests against the Keystone XL Pipeline in 2018.3 And the U.S. government labeled indigenous activists opposed to the pipeline as “extremists.”4
1 Deepa Kumar is Professor of Media Studies in the School of Communication and Information at Rutgers University. Email: dekumar@rutgers.edu. She wishes to thank Stephanie Savell for her close reading of the report and her extensive helpful feedback. Arun Kundnani, Catherine Lutz, Heidi Peltier and Neta Crawford also offered helpful suggestions. Last but not least, Mimi Healy spent a good deal of time helping with everything from the Lexis-Nexis search to fact checking.
2 FOIA requests filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in 2004 show that the FBI investigated peace activists, animal rights activists, lawyers groups and others. According to the ACLU, the FBI expanded its definition of “domestic terrorism” to include citizens participating in lawful protests or civil disobedience. Since then, various states have followed suit with state laws on terrorism that similarly target lawful protests. ACLU. (2005, December 20). New Documents Show FBI Targeting Environmental and Animal Rights Groups Activities as ‘Domestic Terrorism’. https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/new-documents-show-fbi-targeting-environmental-and-animal-rights- groups-activities.
3 ACLU. (2018, September 4). FOIA Document – Government Email about “anti-terrorism training” ahead of Keystone XL Pipeline protests.https://www.aclu.org/documents/foia-document-government-email-about-anti-terrorism-training-ahead-ke ystone-xl-pipeline
4 Parrish, W.; Levin, S. (2018, September 20). ‘Treating protest as terrorism’: US plans crackdown on Keystone XL activists. The Guardian.https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/sep/20/keystone-pipeline-protest-activism-crackdown-s tanding-rock
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This process of labeling activists as “terrorists” is taking place right now in Georgia. Since December 2022, dozens of activists opposed to the construction of a $90 million, 85-acre police training complex, colloquially known as “Cop City,” have been indicted as “domestic terrorists.” If convicted of these charges, they could face up to 35 years in prison, with a minimum sentence of five years.5
Georgia authorities claim that the protestors are violent and have attacked the police, terrorized the community, and destroyed property.6 Lawyers for those arrested contend that the charges are fabricated and that activists are being harshly penalized for civil disobedience.7 Human and Civil Rights groups have denounced Georgia’s use of terrorism laws, stating that they stifle lawful protests and erode First Amendment Rights; they have asked Georgia to drop the unfounded charges.8 Indeed, if such a law were in place in the 1960s, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., born in Atlanta, might have been charged as a "terrorist" for his civil disobedience, potentially facing a lengthy prison sentence.
Alarmingly, Georgia has deployed state violence to squash the movement, even going so far as to kill an activist encamped in the forest. This is the first time in U.S. history that an environmental justice activist has been killed by law enforcement authorities.9 This action echoes the use of violence against the Standing Rock movement in North Dakota in 2016, where over 300 protestors were injured by the police.10 While the police have faced no charges, an activist was sentenced to six years in jail on the grounds of “domestic terrorism” for damaging the Dakota Access Pipeline.11 This conflation of property damage with terrorism sets a dangerous precedent. Georgia expanded its definition of terrorism to include property destruction in 2017 and is using this law to prosecute activists.
5 Carr, C. (2023, March 3). Letter Calling for Dropping of Domestic Terrorism Charges Against Defend the Atlanta Forest Activists. Human Rights Campaign. https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/03/03/letter-calling-dropping-domestic-terrorism-charges-against-defen d-atlanta-forest
6 Among those indicted is a lawyer for the Southern Poverty Law Center who was at the protests as a legal observer. Southern Poverty Law Center. (2023, March 6). NLG and SPLC Statements on Arrest of Legal Observer. https://www.splcenter.org/presscenter/nlg-and-splc-statements-arrest-legal-observer
7 Among those arrested and charged with terrorism is a lawyer who works for Southern Poverty Law Center who was at the protests as a legal observer on behalf of the National Lawyers Guild.
8 Carr, C. (2023, March 3). Letter Calling for Dropping of Domestic Terrorism Charges Against Defend the Atlanta Forest Activists. Human Rights Campaign. https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/03/03/letter-calling-dropping-domestic-terrorism-charges-against-defen d-atlanta-forest#:~:text=If %20successfully%20prosecuted%2C%20these%20domestic,and%20chill%20free %20speech%20activities.
9 Shahshahani, A. (2023, September 15). Cop Cities in a Militarized World. Boston Review. https://www.bostonreview.net/articles/cop-cities-in-a-militarized-world/
10 Dakwar, J. (2016, November 22). Police at Standing Rock Are Using Life-Threatening Crowd-Control Weapons to Crack Down on Water Protectors. ACLU. https://www.aclu.org/news/racial-justice/police-standing-rock-are-using-life-threatening-crowd
11 United States Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Iowa. (2022, September 23). Arizona Woman Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Conspiracy to Damage the Dakota Access Pipeline. https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdia/pr/arizona-woman-sentenced-six-years-prison-conspiracy-damage-dako ta-access-pipeline
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The emerging pattern is one where, on one hand, law enforcement may resort to violence, even up to fatal force, while, on the other hand, protestors face indictment for merely occupying treehouses. To the extent that protestors are charged with violence, the arrest warrants from December and January show that these revolve around acts such as "throwing rocks" and, in a single instance, possessing a weapon.12 All of this is being justified within the framework of "terrorism" and the associations it carries, shaped by the decades-long "war on terror."
This report, authored by a media studies scholar, sheds light on how six leading U.S. national newspapers, as well as a local newspaper, covered the arrests of 42 activists on the grounds of “domestic terrorism” from December 2022 to March 2023. To date, the majority of terrorism arrests in Georgia took place during this period. Since then, Georgia’s Attorney General has used racketeering charges against protestors and their supporters with five additional people being charged as domestic terrorists.13
Previous research has shown that the mainstream media’s framing of terrorism influences public opinion and shapes support or opposition to policies such as Georgia's 2017 terrorism law.14 In any well-functioning democracy, it is vital for the media to ask critical questions, provide accurate information, and hold the government accountable for its actions. This report shows that the media coverage of Cop City had a mixed track record in doing so, with some outlets acting as spokespeople for government officials, labeling protestors as violent “terrorists,” while other outlets provided more balanced, accurate coverage.
We analyzed articles from six widely circulated national newspapers in the United States: The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, and The Wall Street Journal. Additionally, we incorporated Georgia’s The Atlanta Journal-Constitution to provide a local perspective.
Media coverage of terrorism-related arrests in Atlanta largely fell into two distinct camps based on the portrayal of the protestors:
1. Protestors as Violent: Media frames that emphasize violence, property destruction, or depict protestors as imminent threats tend to rationalize terrorism-related arrests. This framing often aligns with the government's perspective justifying these
12 Clerk of Superior Court DeKalb County. (2022, December 15). Arrest Warrants. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23587689-dtwarrantscombined_redacted
13 The Associate Press. (2023, September 5). 61 indicted on racketeering charges in Georgia in ‘Stop Cop City’ movement. NBC News.https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/61-indicted-racketeering-charges-georgia-stop-cop-city-movemen t-rcna103561
14 Norris, P.; Kern, M.; Just, M. (2004). Framing Terrorism: The News Media, the Government and the Public. Routledge.https://www.routledge.com/Framing-Terrorism-The-News-Media-the-Government-and-the-Public/Norris-Ke rn-Just/p/book/9780415947190
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arrests as essential to maintaining public safety and order. Government sources tend to dominate while the voices of protestors and their supporters are largely sidelined. For example, the New York Post had almost twice as many quotes from government sources as from protestors. To the extent that protestors and their supporters are quoted, these quotes were cherry picked to present them in a negative light. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution began this way and had no interviews with protestors during the first round of terrorism arrests in December 2022. The CEO of its parent company Cox, had chaired the fund-raising campaign for Cop City raising $60 million.15 And while the paper claims to be independent from Cox, it effectively became the propaganda arm of the Atlanta Police Foundation. However, by March 2023, in the context of growing national and international support for the Stop Cop City movement, there were more quotes from those opposed to Cop City than in support.
2. Protestors as Concerned Activists: Media frames that humanize protestors, explore their motivations, and consider the viewpoints of their supporters generally result in a more critical stance regarding the utilization of terrorism legislation. This framing raises questions about the legitimacy of such charges, challenges government actions, and encourages contemplation of whether they are truly warranted. Moreover, it fosters empathy and comprehension of the protestors' goals and concerns. Quotes from protestors and their supporters are given adequate space even while government sources are cited. For instance, The Washington Post has generally included twice as many quotes from those opposed to Cop City as from government officials.
The frames used by various media outlets hold substantial sway over public perceptions of terrorism laws, significantly influencing how these laws are interpreted and implemented.
Even though the “war on terror” is supposedly over now that the U.S. has withdrawn from Afghanistan and ended the “forever wars,” U.S. federal and state governments continue to use and even expand punitive measures targeting those within the U.S. who they label as “terrorists.” The U.S. mainstream media sometimes supports this expansion, and in doing so imperils U.S. democracy. All of this is part of the legacy of the post-9/11 wars…
Rest of the paper at https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/files/cow/imce/papers/2023/Cop%20City%20and%20Terrorism_.pdf
