Dear Maryland Activists,

The ACLU of Maryland has exposed covert spying by the Maryland State Police on peaceful activists and groups who oppose the war and the death penalty. That spying was an un-American affront to the principles enshrined in the First Amendment of our Bill of Rights, which is the bedrock of a free, democratic society.

The surveillance we know of went on for 14 months from 2005-2006. We received 43 pages of documents, detailing 288 hours of wrongful covert surveillance that uncovered absolutely no criminal activity.

But we know that’s not the whole story. For example, we already have evidence that at least one of the undercover agents was attending meetings not disclosed in the documents released by the MSP to date.

We need YOUR help to find out the true scope and targets of wrongful spying in Maryland. Soon, the ACLU of Maryland will be filing additional requests under the Maryland Public Information Act to get the full picture.

To get the full story, we need to file public information act requests on behalf of other advocacy organizations and activist groups in Maryland — no matter your political orientation or issue of concern.

Have you ever organized a demonstration, rally, or march? Will YOUR GROUP join with us to seek the truth? We ask that each group who contacts us do the following:

* Designate a SINGLE contact person
* Provide us with the names of key individual activists who could potentially be listed in surveillance records

Send an email to nospying (at) aclu-md.org or call 410-889-8555.

The ACLU of Maryland will work with each group to document the full extent of any surveillance that has occurred, and will ensure that the targets of any such surveillance have an opportunity to review any files that relate to them and have those files purged. Of course, any individuals or groups that have been the target of spying will have the final say on what documents are released to the public and how.

Also, please spread this call to action to other advocacy organizations and activist groups you work with in Maryland. Every day, your advocacy helps energize the democratic process, and we are grateful for your dedication to the most fundamental rights and liberties we all share.

Yours in justice and freedom,
Susan Goering, Executive Director, ACLU of Maryland

P.S. Go online to learn more about ACLU’s public information act lawsuit, which forced release of the MSP documents:
www.aclu-md.org/aPress/Press2008/071708_PeaceGroups.html