FEDS TRACK AUTHOR OF SUSPECT VERSE FBI INVESTIGATION REVEALS POEM CRITICAL OF U.S.Byline: KERRY CAVANAUGH Staff Writer A part-time, politically minded poet, Fazeel Chauhan never considered himself a radical or a threat. But in September, two Federal Bureau of Investigation Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), division of the U.S. Dept. of Justice charged with investigating all violations of federal laws except those assigned to some other federal agency. agents showed up at a downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area. The sprawling, multi-centered megacity is such that its downtown core is often considered just another district like Hollywood or office, where he works as a computer program and customer relations trainer for a government agency. They questioned his bosses and interviewed him about the content of a poem he wrote that was critical of the Bush administration and the Iraq War Iraq War: see under Persian Gulf Wars. Iraq War or Second Persian Gulf War Brief conflict in 2003 between Iraq and a combined force of troops largely from the U.S. and Great Britain; and a subsequent U.S. . Titled ``Kill for a Pill,'' the poem blamed the weapons industry, the media and politicians for propagating war and suffering around the world. It was published on Chowk In Hindi-Urdu, a chowk is a place where paths intersect.
Chauhan, a U.S. citizen who emigrated from Pakistan in 1980 when he was 16, said the agents told him they had received a complaint about his poem and were investigating to see if he was anti-American or a threat to the government. ``I thought, People are going to see that I'm being interviewed by the FBI. My reputation is at stake. People are going to say, `We need to watch out for this guy. He's in trouble with the authorities.''' Chauhan said he didn't think his poem was so controversial. He even snagged a line in the poem from the recent Nicolas Cage movie ``Lord of War'' that fictionalized the exploits of an American arms dealer. ``The biggest export of America is weapons. Weapons cannot be sold by promoting peace, so the ones in power in America encourage market chaos, fighting and wars in the world,'' Chauhan wrote in the first lines of the poem. For an hour in his office, Chauhan said, he explained the poem to the FBI agents, line by line, noting what he meant by sections like ``God bless America's killers and war mongerers?'' and his influences -- including historian Howard Zinn Howard Zinn (born August 24, 1922) is an American historian, political scientist, social critic, activist and playwright, best known as author of the bestseller, A People's History of the United States. , and academic and anti-war author Noam Chomsky Noun 1. Noam Chomsky - United States linguist whose theory of generative grammar redefined the field of linguistics (born 1928) A. Noam Chomsky, Chomsky . ``I love America -- that's why I live here,'' said Chauhan, who is Muslim. ``A main reason I like America is for its freedoms and opportunities for learning. I am against the war, but not against the country.'' FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said the agency must check all allegations of possible threats, but she would not comment on who its agents question. ``In the post-9-11 world, it's our obligation to leave no stone unturned to do everything that can be done; to use all practicable means to effect an object. to leave nothing untried for accomplishing one's purpose. See also: Stone Unturned ,'' she said, adding that just because someone is interviewed by the FBI doesn't mean they are a suspect or have done anything wrong. Since Sept. 11, 2001, law enforcement agencies A law enforcement agency (LEA) is a term used to describe any agency which enforces the law. This may be a local or state police, federal agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). have continually asked people to be vigilant and report suspicious behavior. The agency formed a threat squad that responds to complaints or tips from the public. But advocacy groups representing Muslims and emigrants from the Middle East said their members continue to get caught up in ``friendly interviews'' with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies. ``People freak out freak out Substance abuse A verb, popularized in the US in the '60s–to experience nightmarish hallucinations including by LSD or a similar drug. See 'Bad trip.', Flashback. ,'' said Hamid Khan with the South Asian Network in Artesia. ``They're scared. There is a deep fear within the community. ``The community feels it's being racially profiled and that they are being held to a different standard.'' Groups such as the Muslim Public Affairs Council
``The FBI said, `By law, we have to investigate any tip that is brought to our attention,''' said Sireen Sawaf, government relations director at the council. ``However, it can be problematic because valuable time and resources are being dedicated to investigating tips based on hysteria rather than focusing on legitimate threats. ``If there is an issue, yes, investigate, but make sure you are articulating it clearly and make sure you are communicating with the community that is already skeptical of what you are investigating.'' For Chauhan, who is a self-described progressive and moderate Muslim, the incident left him angry, disillusioned dis·il·lu·sion tr.v. dis·il·lu·sioned, dis·il·lu·sion·ing, dis·il·lu·sions To free or deprive of illusion. n. 1. The act of disenchanting. 2. The condition or fact of being disenchanted. and feeling like a target for suspicion because of his ethnicity and religion. ``Why are billions of dollars being wasted interviewing people who you are not charging, who have done nothing wrong?'' he asked. ``I have written many things that have nothing to do with politics. They could have done some more homework rather than just go interview me.'' kerry.cavanaugh(at)dailynews.com (213) 978-0390 CAPTION(S): photo Photo: CHAUHAN |
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