The FBI has reassigned several agents after they were photographed kneeling during a protest over the killing of George Floyd five years ago, according to a report. The agents knelt—a symbolic act of protest against what they saw as racial injustice during Black Lives Matter protests in Washington, D.C., in 2020.
Three female agents seen in the photo were moved to supervisory roles, which many within the FBI reportedly see as a demotion, the New York Times reported. At least four of these agents, who previously held senior positions in areas such as counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and cybercrime, were recently told that they would be reassigned, The Washington Post reported.
Punished for Protesting Against Department
The agents who were reassigned had earlier held high-ranking positions in counterintelligence, counterterrorism, and cybercrime, according to the report. Sources told CNN that the FBI did not provide any official reason for shifting them to less coveted positions.
Some viewed the decision of the agents to kneel as a way to help calm tensions during the protest—especially since several protests over Floyd's death turned violent that summer—while others saw the act as a political gesture.
"Those agents were not ever trained to be in that situation," a former agent familiar with the matter told the Washington Post. "Riot control is not our mission. We are trained to de-escalate.''
According to reports, the FBI Agents Association gave $100 gift cards to the agents who knelt during the protest as a token of recognition.
In 2023, former Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) alleged that some of those agents were later granted "plum personnel opportunities, promotions, and advancements" within the bureau.
"Many FBI personnel we were trusting to be on the front lines were photographed kneeling in surrender to people who at times were violent," Gaetz told Fox News at the time.
"To climb the ladder in federal employment, you shouldn't have to shimmy up the woke totem pole," he added, describing the behavior of the agents as "demoralizing."
"The purpose of law enforcement is to keep people safe, not to engage in politics," Gaetz argued. "And for the last several years, we've seen the FBI more interested in virtue signaling and political activity than in just the nuts and bolts in evaluating the facts and the law."
No Tolerance from Trump
The move appears to be part of a larger initiative led by President Donald Trump's newly appointed FBI Director, Kash Patel, aimed at eliminating what the president has described as "woke" and politically influenced factions within the agency.
Some officers who had worked on criminal cases against Trump or held leadership roles in FBI field offices nationwide have also been removed from their positions, often without explanation, according to the Washington Post.
The FBI refused to comment on these staffing changes, citing its standard policy of not discussing personnel matters.
However, some former FBI officials expressed concern to CNN, suggesting that the bureau may be bypassing its regular disciplinary procedures—especially since the agents involved had earlier been cleared of any wrongdoing.
The agents at the center of the controversy had been based in Washington, D.C., when former police officer Derek Chauvin was filmed kneeling on George Floyd's neck for over nine minutes as Floyd cried out that he couldn't breathe.
The widely shared video sparked nationwide protests, some of which escalated into violence and left several cities vandalized.
