(This is a continuation of our previous post on this ongoing topic that can be found here.)
The internet waves are still abuzz with questions surrounding Richard Aoki and information is not just coming from the original journalists and blog posters – commenters are also providing some interesting and much needed thoughts.
We have decided to reprint the full text of a comment to a recent Rafu Shimpo article (“ ‘Aoki’ Filmmakers’ Rebuttal To Cir Report”) because it provides some insight into FBI protocol, which no one else has been able to address. This comment supports the need for verification of the FBI information that has been used to cast doubt on Aoki.
ernie August 25, 2012
There are many different ways to establish, conclusively, whether or not Richard Aoki was, indeed, an FBI informant — especially if he was a “paid” informant.
First, a comment about T-symbols used by the FBI. A T-symbol assigned to a source of information would not necessarily mean he/she was an actual informant. T-symbols were used to designate raw information obtained from employers, postal service employees, mail covers, electronic surveillance, financial institutions, military service records from the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, as well as persons interviewed by the FBI who may or may not have had reliable information.
However, if Aoki truly was a paid informant of the FBI, he would have been assigned a code name and a symbol number.
For example, one famous FBI informant (Matt Cvetic) was assigned a code name of Bob Lee and his symbol was CNDI C-113 (Confidential National Defense Informant C-113).
Perhaps the most famous (and most productive) FBI informant of all times was Morris Childs who was a highly placed mole inside the Communist Party. His code name was Harold Lasky and his symbol was CG-5824-S*. His brother, Jack Childs, was also a major FBI informant inside the CPUSA. His code name Marat and his symbol number NY-694-S*.
All FBI field offices kept an index of their active and inactive informants — so it should be possible to determine if Richard Aoki was listed by the FBI’s San Francisco field office and/or if his name appeared on the HQ Informant Index.
In addition, if Richard Aoki was a “paid” informant, his FBI field office case agent (and Special Agent in Charge of San Francisco) would have prepared a request sent to FBI HQ to (1) request authorization to use Aoki as an informant and (2) request permission to pay him whatever amount was deemed necessary for expenses and services.
As I told Seth Rosenfeld, there MUST BE a “main file” on Aoki (both HQ and San Francisco) to archive all these documents plus copies of his reports and FBI employee evaluations of his information plus details regarding how that information was used.
HOWEVER, it is possible that Aoki was only an information source — not a paid informant. Space limitations here prevent me from going into details but new FOIA requests would seem to be in order to ascertain if he was actually a paid informant.
To help supplement this continuing dialogue, we are making available two Amerasia pieces that were written In Memoriam to Richard Aoki when he passed in 2008. One essay is by Harvey Dong entitled “Richard Aoki (1938-2008): Toughest Oriental to Come Out of West Oakland” and the other is “Komrad Richard” by Mo Nishida. They are from the Amerasia issue “Subjugated to Subject: Through Class, Race, and Sex” (2009, see: 35.2 table of contents). Articles from the issue, as well as other issues of Amerasia, can be found on our Metapress site.
Here are more links to other articles that are currently furthering the discussion:
Scott Kurashige: “Each Generation Must Discovery It’s Own History: Some Thoughts on the Richard Aoki Debate” Part 1; Part 2 & Part 3 (coming soon). (via 8asians.com)
Louis Proyect: “The Richard Aoki Imbroglio”
Yvette (@canelanyc): “On Lessons and Legacies” (via Arithmachic.com)
Elbert “Big Man” Howard & Raul (Curly) Estremera: “Two Tributes to Black Panther Field Marshal Richard Aoki” (via SFBayView)
Peter Monaghan: “Scholars Challenge Author’s Assertion That 1960s Activist Worked for FBI” (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
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