John,

Multiple times in the past year, we have seen law enforcement violently turn against racial justice protestors, often with tragic results, while seeming to handle white supremacists with compassion. In the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing and crackdowns on protestors last summer, CREW launched an investigation into why the response was so extreme, and who ordered actions against protestors.

Today, we got some answers, at least about one agency: the Drug Enforcement Agency.

The DEA conducted “covert surveillance” on racial justice protests in Philadelphia, Chicago and Albuquerque. The operations were authorized by the Department of Justice, and involved the use of undercover DEA agents to “infiltrate” protests, social media monitoring and aerial surveillance by the DEA Air Wing. Read more on CREW’s website.

This type of expanded surveillance of protestors raises serious civil liberties concerns, and it stands in stark contrast to the limited and delayed response to the insurrection by Trump supporters on January 6th. It’s impossible to ignore the racial dynamics at play.

The overlap between racism and policing has too often been a recurring theme in this country’s history. As we have tragically seen this week, and many times in the past few years, that legacy still continues.

The American people need answers about law enforcement’s response to white supremacists who stormed the Capitol and how that response compares to the treatment of protestors advocating for racial justice. CREW can and will play a role in that transparency. Today’s investigation about the DEA’s “covert surveillance” last summer is a step in that direction.

Thank you for standing with us,


Noah Bookbinder
President, CREW

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