Southern Poverty Law Center says it’s being ‘targeted’ by Trump administration
WASHINGTON — The director of the Southern Poverty Law Center said Tuesday that the civil rights organization was being “targeted” by the Trump administration with a criminal investigation that appeared to focus on the group’s use of confidential informants who gathered evidence about “extremely violent groups.”
Subscribe to read this story ad-free
Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.
Bryan Fair, the group’s interim chief executive, said in a video released Tuesday that the 55-year-old organization faced a “serious” threat: “a criminal investigation and possible charges against the SPLC or some of our employees.”
Fair said the SPLC’s confidential sources “risked their lives to infiltrate and report on the activities of our nation’s most radical and violent extremist groups,” and provided information to the FBI that “saved lives.” For decades, the SPLC has used civil lawsuits to combat white supremist groups.
The federal criminal purpose of any potential investigation into the group is unclear.
The Justice Department, as is standard practice, has made no public announcement regarding any investigation. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Alabama, where the SPLC is located, said in a statement when asked for comment that “as a matter of Department of Justice policy, we generally do not confirm, deny, or comment on the existence or non-existence of investigations.”
The Trump administration has already taken action against the SPLC, which has long faced criticism from Republicans on Capitol Hill.
In an interview with Trump administration officials working on an upcoming report on “anti-Christian bias,” FBI Director Kash Patel said the FBI had “abandoned all dealings with the Southern Poverty Law Center,” NBC News reported earlier this month.
Recalling the organization’s fight against white supremacy and other forms of injustice, Fair said the SPLC was “not surprised to be the latest organization targeted by this administration, they have made no secret of who they want to protect and who they want to destroy.”
The SPLC’s statement comes at a time when Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is under pressure to achieve victories against disfavored entities by President Donald Trump, who was upset that former Attorney General Pam Bondi failed to secure convictions for his political enemies.
In an interview with NBC News last week, Blanche said Americans should be “happy” that Trump is so closely involved in the Justice Department’s operations.
The SPLC is based in Montgomery, Alabama, part of the Middle District of Alabama, one of 94 U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the United States. This federal prosecutor’s office is led by Acting U.S. Attorney Kevin Davidson, who has served in the role since 2024 and became a career federal prosecutor in 2012.
