Jennifer Meeropol is the granddaughter of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg and the daughter of RFC Founder, Robert Meeropol. Jenn became the Executive Director of the RFC on September 1, 2013. Prior posts on this page were written by Robert (unless otherwise noted), and represent his opinions, which are not necessarily shared by the RFC.I left off my last blog by promising to discuss the impact of this new information on the phrase “I come from Julius” and the Jello box top.
I concluded my blog last week, "Surprise Ending," with an overview of how I would have summarized my parents’ case prior to reading Walter and Miriam’s Schneir’s new book Final Verdict, and promised in my next blog to report on how the new book altered my beliefs. I also reviewed the two key events that led to my parents’ conviction and execution:
I don’t consider myself the world’s foremost expert on my parents’ case. For one thing, my brother, who has a better head for details and more patience for pinning them down, can recount more of the finer points than I can. Still, there are very few people in the world who know more about my parents’ case than I do.
Since the passage of the USA PATRIOT Act in the immediate aftermath of the September 11th attacks, we’ve watched the agents of repression target progressive activists using the vast powers of surveillance and detention these laws granted to the police and the Justice Department. These agents, in conjunction with corporate America, have made a concerted effort to portray progressive activists as terrorists.
Our September 2009 newsletter highlighted the case of Briana Waters, as well as her separation from her four-year-old daughter, Kalliope. Despite maintaining her innocence, Briana was convicted of conspiracy to commit arson and sentenced to six years in federal prison.