Everything about Weather Underground Organization totally explained
Weatherman, known
colloquially as
the Weathermen and later the
Weather Underground Organization, was an
American radical left group formed in 1969 by leaders and members who split from the
Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). They took their name from the lyric "
You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows," from the
Bob Dylan song "
Subterranean Homesick Blues". They also used this lyric as the title of a
position paper they distributed at an SDS convention in Chicago on June 18th, 1969, as part of a special edition of
New Left Notes. The Weathermen were initially part of the
Revolutionary Youth Movement (RYM) within the SDS, splitting from the RYM's
Maoists by claiming there was no time to build a
vanguard party and that revolutionary war against the United States government and the
capitalist system should begin immediately. Their founding document called for the establishment of a "white fighting force" to be allied with the "Black Liberation Movement" and other "
anti-colonial" movements to achieve "the destruction of
US imperialism and the achievement of a
classless world: world
communism."
The group's first public demonstration was the "
Days of Rage," an
October 8,
1969 rally in
Chicago that was coordinated with the trial of the
Chicago Eight. In
1970 the group issued a "Declaration of a State of War" against the United States government, under the name "Weather Underground Organization" (WUO), and members adopted fake identities and pursued
covert activities. They carried out a campaign consisting of
bombings,
jailbreaks, and
riots. Their attacks were mostly bombings of government buildings, along with several banks, police department headquarters and precincts, state and federal courthouses, and state prison administrative offices.
Apart from an apparently accidental premature detonation of a bomb in the
Greenwich Village townhouse explosion which claimed the lives of three of their own members, no one was ever harmed in their extensive bombing campaign, as they were always careful to issue warnings in advance to ensure a safe evacuation of the area prior to detonation. Nevertheless, their activities have often been characterized as domestic terror. Also included with the evacuation warnings issued in their communiqués were statements indicating the particular event to which they were responding. For the bombing of the
United States Capitol on
March 1,
1971, they issued a statement saying it was "in protest of the US invasion of
Laos." For the bombing of
The Pentagon on
May 19,
1972, they stated it was "in retaliation for the US bombing raid in
Hanoi." For the
January 29,
1975 bombing of the
Harry S Truman Building housing the
United States Department of State, they stated it was "in response to escalation in Vietnam."
On
March 6,
1970, during preparations for the Fort Dix bombing, there was an explosion in a
Greenwich Village safe house when the bomb being constructed prematurely detonated due to a wiring malfunction. WUO members
Diana Oughton,
Ted Gold, and
Terry Robbins died in the explosion.
Cathy Wilkerson and
Kathy Boudin escaped unharmed, Wilkerson running naked from the apartment. It was an accident of history that the site of the Village explosion was the former residence of
Merrill Lynch brokerage firm founder
Charles Merrill and his son, the poet
James Merrill. The younger Merrill subsequently recorded the event in his poem
18 West 11th Street, the title being the address of the house. An FBI report later stated that the group had possessed sufficient amounts of explosive to "level ... both sides of the street".
Underground
After the
Greenwich Village incident, the Weathermen officially went underground. WUO shrank considerably, becoming even fewer than they'd been when first formed. The group was devastated by the loss of their friends, and in late April, 1970, members of the Weathermen met in California to discuss what had happened in New York and the future of the organization. The group decided to reevaluate their strategy, particularly in regard to their initial belief in the acceptability of human casualties, rejecting such tactics as kidnapping and assassinations.
They wanted to convince the American public that the United States was truly responsible for the calamity in
Vietnam.
Dissolution and aftermath
COINTELPRO
In April 1971, The "
Citizens' Commission to Investigate the FBI" broke into an
FBI office in
Media, Pennsylvania. The group stole files with several hundred pages, ninety-eight percent of the files targeted left wing individuals and groups. By the end of April, the FBI offices were to terminate all files dealing with leftist groups. The files were a part of an FBI program called
COINTELPRO. However, after COINTELPRO was dissolved in 1971 by J. Edgar Hoover, the FBI continued their counterintelligence on groups like the Weather Underground. In 1973, the FBI established the '
Special Target Information Development' program, where agents were sent undercover to penetrate the Weather Underground. Due to the illegal tactics of FBI agents involved with the program, government attorneys requested all weapons and bomb related charges be dropped against the Weather Underground. The Weather Underground was no longer a fugitive organization and could turn themselves in with minimal charges against them.
FBI agent
W. Mark Felt, along with
Edward S. Miller, authorized FBI agents to break into homes secretly in 1972 and 1973, without a
search warrant, on nine separate occasions. These kinds of FBI burglaries were known as "
black bag jobs". The break-ins occurred at five addresses in New York and New Jersey, at the homes of relatives and acquaintances of Weather Underground members, and didn't lead to the capture of any fugitives. The use of "black bag jobs" by the FBI was declared unconstitutional by the
United States Supreme Court in the
Plamondon case, 407 U.S. 297 (1972).
After revelation by the
Church Committee of the FBI's illegal activities, many agents were investigated. Felt in 1976 publicly stated he'd ordered break-ins and that individual agents were merely obeying orders and shouldn't be punished for it. Felt also stated Gray also authorized the break-ins, but Gray denied this. Felt said on the CBS television program
Face the Nation he'd probably be a "scapegoat" for the Bureau's work."I think this is justified and I'd do it again tomorrow", he said on the program. While admitting the break-ins were "extralegal", he justified it as protecting the "greater good". Felt said:
To not take action against these people and know of a bombing in advance would simply be to stick your fingers in your ears and protect your eardrums when the explosion went off and then start the investigation.
The Attorney General in the new Carter administration,
Griffin B. Bell, investigated, and on
April 10 1978, a federal grand jury charged Felt, Miller and Gray with conspiracy to violate the constitutional rights of American citizens by searching their homes without warrants, though Gray's case didn't go to trial and was dropped by the government for lack of evidence on
December 11 1980.
The indictment charged violations of Title 18, Section 241 of the
United States Code. The indictment charged Felt and the others
did unlawfully, willfully, and knowingly combine, conspire, confederate, and agree together and with each other to injure and oppress citizens of the United States who were relatives and acquaintances of the Weatherman fugitives, in the free exercise and enjoyments of certain rights and privileges secured to them by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America.
Felt and Miller attempted to plea bargain with the government, willing to agree to a misdemeanor guilty plea to conducting searches without warrants—a violation of 18 U.S.C. sec. 2236—but the government rejected the offer in 1979. After eight postponements, the case against Felt and Miller went to trial in the
United States District Court for the District of Columbia on
September 18 1980. On
October 29, former President
Richard M. Nixon appeared as a rebuttal witness for the defense, and testified that presidents since
Franklin D. Roosevelt had authorized the bureau to engage in break-ins while conducting foreign intelligence and counterespionage investigations. It was Nixon's first courtroom appearance since his resignation in 1974. Nixon also contributed money to Felt's legal defense fund, Felt's expenses running over $600,000. Also testifying were former Attorneys General
Herbert Brownell, Jr.,
Nicholas deB. Katzenbach,
Ramsey Clark,
John N. Mitchell, and
Richard G. Kleindienst, all of whom said warrantless searches in national security matters were commonplace and not understood to be illegal, but Mitchell and Kleindienst denied they'd authorized any of the break-ins at issue in the trial.
The jury returned guilty verdicts on
November 6 1980. Although the charge carried a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, Felt was fined $5,000. (Miller was fined $3,500). Writing in
The New York Times a week after the conviction,
Roy Cohn claimed that Felt and Miller were being used as scapegoats by the
Carter administration and that it was an unfair prosecution. Cohn wrote it was the "final dirty trick" and that there had been no "personal motive" to their actions.
The Times saluted the convictions saying it showed "the case has established that zeal is no excuse for violating the Constitution". Felt and Miller appealed the verdict, and they were later pardoned by
Ronald Reagan.
Dissolution
Despite the change in their status the Weather Underground remained underground for a few more years. However, by 1976 the organization was disintegrating. The Weather Underground held a conference in
Chicago called Hard Times. The idea was to create an umbrella organization for all radical groups. However, the event turned sour when Hispanic and Black groups accused the Weather Underground and the Prairie Fire Committee of limiting their roles in racial issues. The conference enhanced a division within the Weather Underground. The Weather Underground faced accusations of abandonment of the revolution by reversing their original ideology.
East coast members favored a commitment to violence and challenged commitments of old leaders, Bernadine Dohrn, Bill Ayers and Jeff Jones. By the end of 1976, the Weather Underground would collapse. Within two years, many members turned themselves in after taking advantage of President
Jimmy Carter’s amnesty for draft dodgers.
Today
Widely-known members of the Weather Underground include
Kathy Boudin,
Mark Rudd,
Terry Robbins,
Ted Gold,
Naomi Jaffe,
Cathy Wilkerson,
Jeff Jones,
David Gilbert,
Susan Stern,
Bob Tomashevsky,
Sam Karp,
Russell Neufeld,
Joe Kelly,
Laura Whitehorn and the still-married couple
Bernardine Dohrn and
Bill Ayers. Most former Weathermen have successfully re-integrated into mainstream society, without necessarily repudiating their original intent.
Bill Ayers, now a professor of education at the
University of Illinois at Chicago, was quoted in an interview to say "I don't regret setting bombs" but has since claimed he was misquoted.
Brian Flanagan has expressed regret for his actions during the Weatherman years, and compared the group's activities to terrorism. Flanagan said: "When you feel that you've right on your side, you can do some pretty horrific things." . Mark Rudd, now a teacher of
mathematics at
Central New Mexico Community College, has said he's "mixed feelings" and feelings of "guilt and shame".
Weatherman documentaries
The WU insisted that
Emile de Antonio shoot the documentary
Underground in 1976. However, a much more extensive, widespread, and critically-acclaimed documentary emerged in 2002 with the Oscar-nominated
The Weather Underground by filmmakers
Bill Siegel and
Sam Green. A little seen film called
Ice had several WU members in a somewhat fictionalized revolutionary setting.
Chronology of events
- 18-22 June, 1969 – SDS National Convention held in Chicago, Illinois. Publication of "Weatherman" founding statement. Members seize control of SDS National Office.
July, 1969 – Members Bernardine Dohrn, Eleanor Raskin, Dianne Donghi, Peter Clapp, David Millstone and Diana Oughton travel to Cuba and meet representatives of the North Vietnamese and Cuban governments.
August 1969 – Weatherman member Linda Sue Evans travels to North Vietnam. Weatherman activists meet in Cleveland, Ohio, in preparation for "Days of Rage" protests scheduled for October, 1969 in Chicago.
4 September 1969 – Female members converge on South Hills High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where they run through the school shouting anti-war slogans and distributing literature promoting the “National Action.” The term "Pittsburgh 26" refers to the 26 women arrested in connection with this incident.
24 September 1969 – A group of members confront Chicago Police during a demonstration supporting the "National Action," and protesting the commencement of the Chicago Eight trial stemming from the 1968 Democratic National Convention.
7 October 1969 – The Haymarket Police Statue in Chicago is bombed; The Weathermen later claim credit for the bombing in their book, Prairie Fire.
8 October-11, 1969 – The "Days of Rage" riots occur in Chicago, damaging a large amount of property. 287 Weatherman members are arrested, and some become fugitives when they fail to appear for trial in connection with their arrests.
November-December, 1969 – A small number of Weatherman members join the first contingent of the Venceremos Brigade (VB) that departs for Cuba to harvest sugar cane.
6 December 1969 – Bombing of several Chicago Police cars parked in a precinct parking lot at 3600 North Halsted Street, Chicago. The WUO claims responsibility in Prairie Fire, stating it's a protest of the fatal police shooting of Illinois Black Panther Party leaders Fred Hampton and Mark Clark on 4 December 1969.
27 December-31, 1969 – The Weathermen hold a "War Council" in Flint, Michigan, where they finalize their plans to change into an underground organization that will commit strategic acts of sabotage against the government. Thereafter they're called the "Weather Underground Organization" (WUO).
February, 1970 – The WUO closes the SDS National Office in Chicago, concluding the major campus-based organization of the 1960s. The first contingent of the VB returns from Cuba and the second contingent departs. By mid-February the bulk of the leading WUO members go underground.
13 February 1970 - Several police vehicles of the Berkeley, California, Police Department are bombed in the police parking lot; 16 February 1970: A bomb is detonated at the Golden Gate Park branch of the San Francisco Police Department, killing one officer and injuring a number of other policemen. No organization claims credit for either bombing.
March, 1970 – Warrants are issued for several WUO members, who become federal fugitives when they fail to appear for trial in Chicago.
6 March 1970 – 34 sticks of dynamite are discovered in the 13th Police District of Detroit, Michigan. During February and early March, 1970, members of the WUO, led by Bill Ayers, are reported to be in Detroit, for the purpose of bombing a police facility.
6 March 1970 – WUO members Theodore Gold, Diana Oughton, and Terry Robbins are killed in the Greenwich Village townhouse explosion, when a nailbomb they were constructing detonates. The bomb was intended to be planted at a non-commissioned officer's dance at Fort Dix, New Jersey.
30 March 1970 – Chicago Police discover a WUO "bomb factory" on Chicago’s north side. A subsequent discovery of a WUO "weapons cache" in a south side Chicago apartment several days later ends WUO activity in the city.
April, 1970 – The FBI arrests WUO members Linda Sue Evans and Dianne Donghi are arrested in New York.
2 April 1970 – A federal grand jury in Chicago returns a number of indictments charging WUO members with violation of federal anti-riot laws. Also, a number of additional federal warrants charging "unlawful flight to avoid prosecution" are returned in Chicago based on the failure of WUO members to appear for trial in local cases. (The Anti-riot Law charges were later dropped in January, 1974.)
10 May 1970 – The National Guard Association building in Washington, D.C. is bombed.
21 May 1970 – The WUO releases its "Declaration of a State of War" communique under Bernardine Dohrn's name.
6 June 1970 – In a letter, the WUO claims credit for bombing of the San Francisco Hall of Justice, although no explosion has occurred. Months later, workmen locate an unexploded bomb.
9 June 1970 - The New York City Police headquarters is bombed by Jane Alpert and accomplices. The Weathermen state this is in response to "police repression."
23 July 1970 – A federal grand jury in Detroit, Michigan, returns indictments against a number of underground WUO members and former WUO members charging violations of various explosives and firearms laws. (These indictments were later dropped in October, 1973.)
27 July 1970 - The United States Army base at The Presidio in San Francisco is bombed on the 11th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution. [NYT,7/27/70]
12 September 1970 – The WUO helps Dr. Timothy Leary escape from the California Men's Colony prison.
8 October 1970 - Bombing of Marin County courthouse. WUO states this is in retaliation for the killings of Jonathan Jackson, William Christmas, and James McClain. [NYT,8/10/70]
10 October 1970 - A Queens traffic-court building is bombed. WUO claims this is to express support for the New York prison riots. [NYT,10/10/70, p. 12]
14 October 1970 - The Harvard Center for International Affairs is bombed. WUO claims this is to protest the war in Vietnam. [NYT,10/14/70, p. 30]
December, 1970 – Fugitive WUO member Caroline Tanker, who fled the country for Cuba, is arrested by the FBI in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Fugitive WUO member Judith Alice Clark is arrested by the FBI in New York.
1 March, 1971 - The United States Capitol is bombed. WUO states this is to protest the invasion of Laos. President Richard M. Nixon denounces the bombing as a "shocking act of violence that will outrage all Americans." [NYT,3/2/71]
April, 1971 – FBI agents discover an abandoned WUO "bomb factory" in San Francisco, California.
29 August, 1971 - Bombing of the Office of California Prisons, allegedly in retaliation for the killing of George Jackson. [LAT,8/29/71]
17 September 1971 - The New York Department of Corrections in Albany, New York is bombed, as per the WUO to protest the killing of 29 inmates at Attica State Penitentiary. [NYT,9/18/71]
15 October 1971 - The bombing of William Bundy's office in the MIT research center. [NYT,10/16/71]
19 May, 1972 - Bombing of The Pentagon, "in retaliation for the U.S. bombing raid in Hanoi." [NYT,5/19/72]
18 May, 1973 - The bombing of the 103rd Police Precinct in New York. WUO states this is in response to the killing of 10-year-old black youth Clifford Glover by police.
19 September 1973 – A WUO member is arrested by the FBI in New York. Released on bond, this member again submerges into the underground.
28 September 1973 - The ITT headquarters in New York and Rome, Italy are bombed. WUO states this is in response to ITT's alleged role in the Chilean coup earlier that month. [NYT,9/28/73]
6 March, 1974 - Bombing of the Dept. of Health, Education and Welfare offices in San Francisco. WUO states this is to protest alleged sterilization of poor women. In the accompanying communiqué, the Women’s Brigade argues for "the need for women to take control of daycare, healthcare, birth control and other aspects of women's daily lives."
31 May 1974 - The Office of the California Attorney General is bombed. WUO states this is in response to the killing of six members of the Symbionese Liberation Army.
17 June 1974 - Gulf Oil's Pittsburgh headquarters is bombed. WUO states this is to protest the company's actions in Angola, Vietnam, and elsewhere.
July, 1974 – The WUO releases the book Prairie Fire, in which they indicate the need for a unified Communist Party. They encourage the creation of study groups to discuss their ideology, and continue to stress the need for violent acts. The book also admits WUO responsibility of several actions from previous years. The Prairie Fire Organizing Committee (PFOC) arises from the teachings in this book and is organized by many former WUO members.
11 September 1974 – Bombing of Anaconda Corporation (part of the Rockefeller Corporation). WUO states this is in retribution for Anaconda’s alleged involvement in the Chilean coup the previous year.
29 January, 1975 - Bombing of the State Department; WUO states this is in response to escalation in Vietnam. (AP. "State Department Rattled by Blast," The Daily Times-News, January 29 1975, p.1)
March, 1975 – The WUO releases its first edition of a new magazine entitled Osawatomie.
16 June 1975 - Weathermen bomb a Banco de Ponce (a Puerto Rican bank) in New York, WUO states this is in solidarity with striking Puerto Rican cement workers.
11 July-13, 1975 – The PFOC holds its first national convention during which time they go through the formality of creating a new organization.
September, 1975 – Bombing of the Kennecott Corporation; WUO states this is in retribution for Kennecott's alleged involvement in the Chilean coup two years prior.
October 20, 1981 - Brinks robbery in which Kathy Boudin and several members of the Weather Underground and the Black Liberation Army stole over $1 million from a Brinks armored car at the Nanuet Mall, near Nyack, New York on October 20, 1981. The robbers were stopped by police later that day and engaged them in a shootout, killing two police officers and one Brinks guard as well as wounding several others.
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