The FBI has fired a group of agents who were pictured kneeling at a racial justice protest over the death of George Floyd, US media report.
The termination letter cited alleged “lack of judgement” in their actions, according to a source cited by CBS News, the BBC’s US partner. Between 15 to 20 agents have reportedly been sacked.
The agents reportedly took the knee alongside others during a demonstration in 2020. Floyd, a black man, had been killed by a police officer who knelt on his neck in May that year, sparking global outcry.
The FBI Agents Association condemned the dismissals, stating that the agents’ rights had been violated. The FBI declined to comment when contacted by the BBC.
The reported firings come as the Trump administration seeks to purge what it sees as left-wing and so-called “woke” policies and officials from every part of the federal government.
Several right-wing commentators had criticised agents and police officers who were pictured kneeling on social media at the time.
But their proponents argue the kneeling was a tactic to reduce tensions with protesters, rather than signalling that the agents agreed with their views.
The act became a symbol of dissent against racism, as viral footage showed Floyd’s killer, white police officer Derek Chauvin, kneeling on his neck while he was pinned to the floor for more than nine minutes.
An official post-mortem examination found Floyd died of a heart attack caused by neck compression. Chauvin is currently serving a 22-and-a-half-year sentence for Floyd’s murder.
Taking the knee had also been used in the US as a protest against racial injustice and police brutality before Floyd’s murder – notably by former NFL player Colin Kaepernick.
Friday’s mass sacking is the latest in a string of firings at the FBI.
The agency’s former acting director Brian Driscoll, former assistant director in charge of the Washington field office Steven Jensen, and Spencer Evans, former special agent in charge of the Las Vegas field office, have all been let go recently.
Earlier this month, the three former agents sued FBI Director Kash Patel and US Attorney General Pam Bondi, alleging the officials fired them to appease President Donald Trump.
In its statement on Friday, the FBI Agents Association said Patel’s “dangerous new pattern of actions are weakening the Bureau” and making it “harder to recruit and retain skilled agents – ultimately putting our nation at greater risk.”
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