Surviving the War at Home: Racism, Repression, and Black Wellbeing

On International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, we reflect on the many ways systemic racism continues to shape Black lives—not just in overt acts of hate, but in more insidious, institutionalized forms of repression.

Brian Glick’s War at Home exposes how state-sponsored sabotage has historically been weaponized against Black communities fighting for justice. The lessons from this book remain deeply relevant as we navigate ongoing struggles for racial equity, mental health, and collective liberation.

War at Home: Covert Action Against U.S. Activists and What We Can Do About It by Brian Glick (1989) examines the U.S. government’s covert repression of social movements, particularly through the FBI’s COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program). Glick outlines how these programs targeted activists fighting for civil rights, Black liberation, Indigenous sovereignty, workers’ rights, and other progressive causes.

A PDF version is available here.

Key Ideas in War at Home

COINTELPRO and the Suppression of Black Resistance

Glick details how the U.S. government, particularly through the FBI’s COINTELPRO program, deliberately targeted Black liberation movements. Through covert tactics, the FBI and other agencies sought to infiltrate, disrupt, and neutralize activist groups. These tactics included surveillance, disinformation, psychological warfare, and even violence against activists.

The Black Panther Party, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., and countless grassroots activists faced surveillance, smear campaigns, wrongful imprisonment, and assassination. The goal? To destabilize, divide, and discourage Black resistance.

The legacy of this repression still lingers today. Black activists, journalists, and community leaders continue to be vilified and surveilled, while mainstream narratives often downplay or erase the psychological and material toll of this harassment. The “war at home” never truly ended—it simply evolved into new forms of policing, workplace discrimination, digital surveillance, and systemic barriers that impact Black wellbeing.

Tactics of Political Suppression
Glick identifies four key strategies used by the government:

Infiltration: Placing informants inside activist groups to create distrust and sabotage from within.
Psychological Warfare: Spreading false rumors, sending fake letters, and manipulating the media to discredit activists.
Harassment Through Legal System: Using false arrests, lengthy court cases, and excessive bail to drain activists’ time and resources.
Extralegal Force and Violence: Assassinations, police brutality, and violent crackdowns on activists and their organizations.

The Impact on Social Movements

Many organizations were weakened, leaders were jailed or killed, and communities were left fragmented. Fear and distrust spread among activists, making long-term organizing difficult.

The Psychological Toll of Racial Repression

State repression isn’t just about physical violence—it’s also about the slow erosion of mental and emotional health. Being constantly surveilled, targeted, and gaslit takes a toll. The exhaustion expressed by Black activists today echoes the fatigue of those who came before them. The feeling of being unheard, of fighting an uphill battle against institutions that refuse to acknowledge harm, is a psychological war in itself.

This has real consequences for Black mental health. Studies show that structural racism contributes to higher rates of anxiety, depression, and PTSD in Black communities. The fear of retaliation—whether at work, in activism, or even in daily life—creates chronic stress that impacts both physical and emotional wellbeing.

Survival and Resistance: What Can We Do?

Glick’s War at Home doesn’t just document oppression; it offers strategies for resistance. Black communities have always developed ways to survive and thrive under repression.

Glick emphasizes the need for activists to recognize and counter state repression. He suggests building strong, resilient organizations, educating the public, maintaining security culture, and using legal and political strategies to fight back. The book calls for solidarity across movements to resist government oppression collectively.

Some key takeaways:

Community is Protection: State repression thrives on isolation. Black people must continue building strong networks of mutual aid, solidarity, and trusted spaces for healing.
Know the Playbook: Understanding historical patterns of repression helps us anticipate and counteract modern-day versions, from digital surveillance to workplace discrimination.
Prioritize Mental Wellbeing: Black survival isn’t just about resistance—it’s also about joy, rest, and healing. Therapy, collective care, and radical self-compassion are forms of defiance in a system that seeks to wear us down.
Challenge the Narrative: The state-controlled narrative seeks to discredit those who speak truth to power. Supporting independent Black media, amplifying marginalized voices, and documenting our stories ensures that our struggles—and victories—are not erased.

Conclusion

War at Home is a critical work that exposes the lengths to which governments will go to suppress dissent. Glick not only documents historical repression but also provides practical advice on how activists can resist and protect themselves against state-sponsored sabotage.

On this International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, we must recognize that racism is more than just personal prejudice—it is an institutional force that has long worked to suppress Black people’s right to justice, dignity, and wellbeing.

War at Home reminds us that state repression is real, but so is Black resilience. By learning from the past, supporting one another, and prioritizing both resistance and rest, we can continue to survive—and thrive—despite the war waged against us.