Missoula panel debates legitimacy and tactics of protest, referencing Abbie Hoffman, COINTELPRO and intelligence agencies

Panelists at a Missoula screening and discussion of a film about 1960s protest politics debated when and how public protest is legitimate, whether theatrical tactics can be effective, and the historical role of intelligence programs in suppressing dissent.

"Part of the reason Abbie Hoffman is so interesting, it seems to me, is that he did not enact the the power. He was not somber," said a panelist who identified himself as a scholar, describing Hoffman’s theatrical approach to protest. The same panelist said strategic and tactical questions about protest "are questions any protester has to deal with for himself or herself," and declined to set a universal rule for legitimacy.

Panelists described a common pattern: organizers often try working within political institutions first, and resort to street protest when they conclude the system "doesn't listen." One panelist…