(Headline USA) The FBI has reassigned several agents who were photographed kneeling as cities around the country burned during the tumultuous summer of 2020, two people familiar with the matter said Wednesday.
The reasons for the moves were not immediately clear, though they come as the FBI under Director Kash Patel has been undertaking broad personnel changes and as Deputy Director Dan Bongino has repeatedly sought to reassure supporters of President Donald Trump who are critical of the bureau that their complaints are being taken seriously.
BREAKING: The FBI agents that kneeled with BLM protesters in 2020, have been removed from their positions.
Via: CNN pic.twitter.com/TylnfRcvup
— Ian Jaeger (@IanJaeger29) April 30, 2025
“The Director and I are working on a number of significant initiatives to ensure that the mistakes of the past are never repeated, and that many of your open questions are answered,” Bongino wrote in one recent post on X, formerly known as Twitter. He did not specify what mistakes or questions he was referring to.
The reassignments, first reported by CNN, were confirmed to The Associated Press by two people familiar with the matter who insisted on anonymity to discuss non-public personnel moves. An FBI spokesman declined to comment.
HAHAHA The FBI has reportedly “reassigned” the agents who kneeled with BLM protesters during the George Floyd Riots, per CNN pic.twitter.com/B1SgSz9wL7
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) April 30, 2025
The photographs at issue showed a group of agents taking a knee during one of the demonstrations following the May 2020 killing of Floyd.
The kneeling angered some in the FBI but was justified at the time as a possible de-escalation tactic during a period of widespread protests.
Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press
