TL;DR: FBI counterterrorism agents spent weeks tracking a former Extinction Rebellion NYC member before showing up at his door on February 7, 2026. They wanted to ask "questions about Extinction Rebellion NYC." Six Boston activists got similar FBI visits on the same day in March 2025. The group's attorney says this is "usually the way we find out an actual investigation is underway." This is NSPM-7 in action: Trump's September 2025 directive that treats "anti-capitalism" as a terrorism indicator.
What Happened
On the evening of February 7, 2026, two special agents knocked on a door 200 miles outside New York City. One flashed credentials from the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force. They had "questions about Extinction Rebellion NYC" [1].
The former member, who had left the group two years earlier, didn't answer questions. He called his attorney instead.
But here's the part that should concern everyone: the FBI had been watching him for weeks before showing up. In January, an agent called his phone. When that went unanswered, they tracked him to his previous address. "She was standing outside my door," the agent later admitted at his current home [1].
The FBI doesn't send counterterrorism agents on multi-week surveillance operations for small-time targets. This wasn't a casual check-in. This was an investigation.
A Pattern Emerges
This wasn't a one-off. Extinction Rebellion says the same thing happened in Boston almost a year earlier.
In March 2025, FBI agents visited six different climate activists affiliated with Extinction Rebellion Boston, all on the same day [1][2]. No explanation given. No charges filed. Just agents showing up at doors, asking questions about a nonviolent environmental group.
Ron Kuby, Extinction Rebellion's attorney, knows what this means: "This is usually the way we find out an actual investigation is underway and is often followed by other visits and other actions" [2].
The FBI's standard response? They "can neither confirm nor deny conducting specific investigations" [3].
What Extinction Rebellion Actually Does
Let's be clear about what kind of "terrorist" group we're talking about here.
Extinction Rebellion uses nonviolent civil disobedience to demand action on climate change. They block roads. They stage sit-ins. Sometimes they spray paint buildings. These are typically misdemeanor offenses, the kind local police handle, not the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force [2].
"We are not terrorists," Extinction Rebellion NYC stated. "We use artistic nonviolent organized protests, community outreach, and strategic advocacy to empower everyday citizens and drive meaningful environmental change" [2].
They glue themselves to things. They get arrested. They go to court. They pay fines. That's been the playbook for decades of civil disobedience movements.
What changed is who's watching.
NSPM-7: When Your Beliefs Become Terrorism
On September 25, 2025, Trump issued National Security Presidential Memorandum 7. It directed the FBI's 200+ Joint Terrorism Task Force units across the country to investigate "domestic terrorism," but with a twist [4].
The indicators that supposedly identify terrorists include:
- Anti-capitalism
- Anti-Americanism
- Anti-Christianity
- Hostility to traditional views on family and religion
- "Radical gender ideology"
- Open borders views
Read that list again. These aren't descriptions of violent acts. They're political and religious beliefs. Disagree with capitalism? You might be a terrorist. Support trans rights? Same bucket.
Extinction Rebellion's entire philosophy is built on challenging capitalism's role in climate destruction. Under NSPM-7, that's not a political position. It's a terrorism indicator.
The Secret List
It gets worse. Attorney General Pam Bondi recently confirmed what activists had suspected: the government maintains a secret list of "domestic terrorist organizations" under NSPM-7 [4][5].
When asked to share the list with Congress, she refused.
We know "antifa" is on it. Bondi confirmed that much. But who else? What organizations? What criteria actually put you on the list?
Nobody outside the administration knows. There's no transparency, no appeal process, no way to know if your group has been labeled until agents start showing up at members' doors.
Extinction Rebellion NYC put it bluntly: "We did not anticipate that we would be among the first groups" [1].
The Movement's Response
Extinction Rebellion isn't backing down. They're treating this as confirmation that their message is hitting home.
"This is an escalation against the climate movement as a whole," Extinction Rebellion stated, "and the next phase of this administration's crackdown on dissent that many of us have been expecting" [2].
Other environmental groups are watching closely. If the FBI is investigating Extinction Rebellion (a group that's been active for years without federal scrutiny) who's next? The Sierra Club? 350.org? Local climate action committees?
The chilling effect is the point. When FBI agents start showing up at activists' doors, fewer people show up to protests. That's how political surveillance works.
What to Do If the FBI Comes to Your Door
If agents show up asking questions about activism:
- You don't have to talk to them. The Fifth Amendment applies. Politely decline and close the door.
- Don't invite them inside. Keep the conversation on the doorstep, if you have one at all.
- Get badge numbers and names. Write them down immediately after.
- Contact a lawyer. Organizations like the National Lawyers Guild have experience with activist legal support.
- Document everything. Time, date, what was said, what was asked. Share with your organization.
- Don't delete anything. If there's an investigation, destroying documents can be a separate crime.
The FBI is fishing for information. You're not required to help them.
The Bigger Picture
This isn't just about Extinction Rebellion. It's about what kind of country uses counterterrorism resources against climate activists.
The FBI has 200 Joint Terrorism Task Force units nationwide [1]. These are the same units that were created to hunt al-Qaeda after 9/11. Now they're spending weeks tracking down people who once attended Extinction Rebellion meetings.
We've documented how ICE surveillance tools built for immigration enforcement are being turned on protesters. We've tracked how NSPM-7 creates a framework for labeling political opponents as terrorists.
The Extinction Rebellion visits are where these systems connect. The policy becomes the practice. The memo becomes the knock on the door.
References
- The Intercept - FBI Counterterrorism Agents Spent Weeks Seeking a Climate Activist, Then Showed Up at His Door (February 12, 2026)
- Common Dreams - Nonviolent Climate Activist Group Says It's Been Targeted by FBI 'Terrorism' Task Force (February 18, 2026)
- Reuters/MarketScreener - Environmental group Extinction Rebellion says it is under federal US probe (February 18, 2026)
- The Intercept - AG Pam Bondi Confirms Secret Domestic Terrorist List Exists, Refuses to Share with Congress (February 12, 2026)
- Lawfare - The Bondi Memo's Quiet Rewriting of Domestic Terrorism Rules