Mu oz, the most popular Puerto Rican leader of the 20th century, was then president of the Puerto Rican Senate. He would become the island's first elected governor and the father of its commonwealth constitution. The FBI kept him under surveillance for more than 20 years, with agents compiling information about his personal debts and mistresses. We must have information concerning their weaknesses, morals, criminal records, spouses, children, family life and personal activities. Many of those dissidents were subsequently blacklisted and for years were unable to find jobs.
Some key questions are still unanswered.
Among them is whether the FBI or other federal intelligence agencies were involved in torture and radiation experiments on Albizu while he was back in jail in the early '50s, as his family and closest supporters have long alleged. Questions also remain about what role the agency had in a spate of bombings and assassinations aimed at independence leaders during the '60s and '70s. It will take months, maybe years, for historians to ferret through the 1.8 million documents. As usual in this country, the truth is revealed long after the damage has been done. Juan Gonzalez is a contributing editor of In These Times.