From ISU Student to CIA Spy: The Dangers of Clandestine Government Operations
Monday, 07 Feb 2022 at 6:00 pm – Sun Room, Memorial Union
This event will be in person and live streamed. The live stream link: https://iastate.hosted.panopto.com/Panop...19016df85bWhile an Iowa State University student, Verne Lyon was recruited by the CIA to spy on college professors and fellow students as part of Operation CHAOS, a massive domestic surveillance program carried out at the height of the Vietnam War. He was later dispatched to Cuba to subvert the Castro regime. Mr. Lyon's book, Eyes on Havana: Memoir of an American Spy Betrayed by the CIA, chronicles the actions Lyon took on campus and abroad for the U.S. government. Mr. Lyon will discuss the dangers of covert operations and how unchecked agencies threaten our country and world order.
Mr. Lyon is an aerospace engineer and private pilot. He helped found and direct the Association of Responsible Dissent and the Association of National Security Alumni. The University Book Store will be on site selling copies of Mr. Lyon's book, and he will do a book signing.
Stay for the entire event, including the brief question-and-answer session that follows the formal presentation. Most events run 75 minutes.
Sign-ins are after the event concludes. For lectures in the Memorial Union, go to the information desk in the Main Lounge. In other academic buildings, look for signage outside the auditorium.
Lecture Etiquette
- Stay for the entire lecture and the brief audience Q&A. If a student needs to leave early, he or she should sit near the back and exit discreetly.
- Do not bring food or uncovered drinks into the lecture.
- Check with Lectures staff before taking photographs or recording any portion of the event. There are often restrictions. Cell phones, tablets and laptops may be used to take notes or for class assignments.
- Keep questions or comments brief and concise to allow as many as possible.