The Vault

In the spirit of transparency insofar as government investigations undertaken by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are concerned, the FBI, which has always released - and continues to release - some documents in accordance with Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, has recently opened an electronic reading room to the public.  This electronic reading room is known as "The Vault."

Thus, from the comfort of one's own computer, one can read the most "popular" documents that have been released over the years. The files are organized alphabetically by name or topic and by category or subject, including civil rights, counterterrorism, popular culture, unusual phenomena, and violent crime, among others.  New releases of broad interest to the public can also be found on the Vault's Hot Topics page.

Those documents that can be read in the Vault do not represent all documents released by the FBI.  To read those, one must make an appointment 48 hours in advance and physically present oneself at the Reading Room at FBI Headquarters in Washington, DC.  Alternatively, one can purchase CDs of the material requested at a cost of USD 15 per CD.  The FBI warns, however, that it will not mail any CDs until it has actually received payment for them.  Good idea!

So far the Vault contains some 2,000 documents that have been scanned from  paper into digital copies.  So today, I spent some time making miscellaneous queries to see what is available.  For example, under "Counterterrorism," I selected the files pertaining to the arch-villain Usama (Osama) Bin Laden.  The brief summary of the Bin Laden files notes that all material contained in the files predates 9-11.  The scanned files may not always be easy to read, but they describe how Bin Laden participated in the 1984 murder of two German nationals.   Interestingly, however, no warrant was issued for his arrest until March 1998.  Later that same year, he was wanted in connection with the US Embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania.  One wonders exactly why this man was at large for so long - and why he still has never been found.  But that information will not be found in these files.

Under "Anti-War," I selected the files pertaining to one of my personal heroes, historian and author Howard Zinn, who died in early 2010.  Chillingly, the FBI files detailed years of targeted investigations against Zinn.

Continuing under "Civil Rights," I selected another of my heroes, the late US Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.  There are no less than 11 batches of materials gathered during FBI investigations concerning Marshall.  Some of these no doubt relate to death threats made against this awesome individual who risked his own life - time and again - to advance the cause of blacks and other minorities.

The Vault represents a real treasure trove for researchers and others interested in understanding the history of the United States, in particular its dark underbelly, which can no longer be denied.  But it is better to bring these "secrets" out from under the rocks where they have been buried for so long and into the light of day so that we can understand and learn from the mistakes made by previous generations. 

If we do not take such opportunities to educate ourselves and learn, then progress and enlightenment are not possible.