Those Who Silently Serve Our Country

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, when I was a teenager, police were often called “pigs” and the “military-industrial complex” was viewed as a threat to American democracy. Lest we forget, police all over the country were openly mistreating minorities at that time and young men were being forced to serve in a war most, particularly those compelled to serve, did not believe in.

There was deep distrust of our nation’s intelligence community, the National Security Agency and Central Intelligence Agency, and federal law enforcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Yet, even at this dark moment in our history, there were people who silently served this country—devoid of any political agenda. I know this, now, because my father, then – unbeknownst to me—was one of them.

He disappeared, was captured and murdered by Idi Amin, the President of Uganda in 1971 investigating, on behalf of our government, hundreds of murders committed by Amin and his soldiers in the garrison town of Mbarara. 

Just this month I came upon a yellowed newspaper clipping in his file of articles written by, or about him entitled, To Do Oddball Work, You Need Oddballs. The date of the article is not revealed in the clipping (which obviously must be pre-1971), neither is the newspaper. However, the article indicates it was from the Associated Press.     

The following Editor’s Note appears at the beginning of the article:

“In the never-never world of cloak and dagger, genius is where you find it. The following dossier of supporting evidence of this pragmatic rule of thumb appeared in the Washington Post and Times-Herald, written by a man who for reasons of continuing security must remain anonymous. The writer is simply identified as Operative X.”

Now, I don’t know for certain whether my father wrote this article, the article was written about him, or about his associates. But I do know he was involved in our nation’s clandestine intelligence and lost his life in service thereof.  

And I do know there are many, many others who silently served during this period, who opposed both mistreatment of minorities in America and the Vietnam War.

They worked secretly and without applause.

When the opportunity to join in this effort was presented to me decades ago, my father’s friends in the field gently suggested, at that pivotal moment in my career, I pursue a different path—in the asset management business. While I was told the door would remain open for the foreseeable future, I pursued an alternative, yet similar, course investigating global financial crimes, being a corporate whistleblower and representing whistleblowers.   

Recently I was confronted outside a Florida grocery store by a man dressed in military camouflage asking for donations supposedly for military veterans. Whether or not he ever served in the military was unclear. When I declined to give him money, he aggressively pursued saying, “So, you don’t want to support those who served this country?”

“You have no idea,” I responded as I walked away, “No idea.”

America has changed dramatically from the 1960s and 1970s. Today, we heap praise on public safety—police and firefighters—and our military. (As a forensic investigator and lawyer, I have represented some of the largest police and firefighter organizations nationally and have no problem with supporting public safety.)

Ironically, disrespect of the intelligence community and federal law enforcement is at an all-time high—even in our nation’s capital.

Believe it or not, there are people who do not wear a uniform, yet serve our country—that you will never see—who deserve your trust and respect too.