FBI RAID ON BLACK NEWSPAPER RAISES
FREEDOM OF SPEECH QUESTIONS IN AUGUSTA

By Charles Walker Sr.

In Augusta, Georgia, the African American community has been violated. Our civil liberties were trampled, our freedom of speech threatened.

How else can one describe an FBI raid into a Black newspaper office? Wielding guns and wearing bulletproof vests, agents stormed the offices of the Augusta Focus, where the only weapons brandished by the workers were pens and notebooks. Of course, the media was tipped off to the events on August 18th, so the escapade was filmed for the nightly news, just as if it were another episode of COPs.

But this was not a made for TV movie. Sadly, this is America in the year 2003. Suddenly, we are a changed society. Freedom is in retreat. The Patriot Act has established an atmosphere in which federal authorities are discarding Constitutional rights. J. Edgar Hoover meet John Ashcroft; and in Georgia, meet Richard Thompson, the staunch Republican, Savannah-based US Attorney, who has quickly built a reputation for what appear to be politically motivated investigations of Democrats. These so-called authorities are a threat to the treasured American way of life.

At the core of our judicial process is fairness. That's what separates our democracy from the oppressive regimes abroad. There is nothing fair, however, about what Mr. Thompson has done. In the aftermath of the raid on a newspaper office, neither Mr. Thompson nor the FBI have given the slightest hint as to why they raided the Augusta Focus. What federal crime are they investigating? They never answered that question.

Without answers from the authorities, it leaves us to piece the puzzle together. All signs point to the Augusta Focus raid as another segment in Mr. Thompson's effort to ruin my political career and discredit my businesses. Over the course of the last 18 months, Mr. Thompson has been on a mission to seek and destroy, and I have been the target, with my family and business associates. I was also the first victim.

For 20 years, I served as a State Senator, including six years as the Majority Leader of the Senate, one of the most influential public officials in the state. As a public servant, I brought jobs and economic development to Augusta. Last year, after Mr. Thompson's high profile, no-results investigation began, I was defeated in my re-election bid by 236 votes. Needless to say, I'm used to political fights, and will likely run for office again. Mr. Thompson, however, has elevated the partisan battleground to a dangerous level. Our justice system is not a political toy. But he made it one.

During an 18-month investigation, which has yielded no hint of an alleged crime or even a charge, Mr. Thompson has harassed my family and customers. Authorities have arrived at my children's offices, demanding personal records, such as pay stubs. He has subpoenaed more than 300 of my advertisers, clients and business associates. This behavior is not isolated. Other prominent Democrats, such as former Gov. Roy Barnes, House Speaker Terry Coleman and State Sen. Van Streats suffered similar harassment.

This time, however, he has miscalculated. The raid on the Augusta Focus is as much an attack on this community, as it is on my business. And, it is an attack on the Fourth Estate. The media's role in our society is that of an independent voice; Mr. Thompson crossed the line with his boorish act of intimidation.

At home, our community is using the attack on their newspaper as a rallying cry. Our Constitution guarantees freedom of speech. Just as we marched together for the right to vote four decades ago, the Black community is coming together to send a powerful message back to Mr. Thompson.

"Our community will not stand around and allow our rights to be trampled upon for partisan politics,'' said Quincy Robinson, a retired college educator. "The Augusta Focus is the information provider for our community. Mr. Thompson is attempting to silence our newspaper. The community won't let him. We stand as one in support of Mr. Walker and our newspaper.''

Rev. Leonard Smalls, a political activist from Savannah agreed, saying, "The US Attorney is abusing his power and discrediting his office. There is no explanation that can justify why the FBI raided a newspaper office. This is a blemish on our Justice System, and a scar on our society. Mr. Thompson should be reprimanded by his superiors in Washington.''

Moreover, our journalism brethren are asking, how can this be? There would be an outcry if the FBI raided the New York Times or Washington Post? The Fourth Estate will also demand that Mr. Thompson answer for his actions.

We will shine a spotlight on Augusta, Georgia. Our community will send a message that reverberates all the way back to Mr. Ashcroft's Justice Department in Washington, and up Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House. Our rights will not be trampled; our voices will be heard. The Augusta Focus will publish.

(Charles Walker Sr. is publisher of the Augusta Focus and a former State Senator.)