Environmental groups brace for a new era of fear and federal targeting
As the Trump administration sharpens its attacks on environmental nonprofits, Earthjustice president Abigail Dillen warns the movement is under threat like never before.
Sharon Lerner reports for ProPublica.
In short:
- The Trump administration has launched criminal probes and public attacks against nonprofit environmental groups, freezing billions in clean energy grants and using the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to amplify its claims.
- Legal threats like SLAPP suits and a $660 million verdict against Greenpeace signal rising corporate and governmental hostility toward advocates, emboldened by federal rhetoric.
- Earthjustice and other groups are hiring outside legal help and preparing for a landscape where even lawful environmental work can provoke intimidation or criminal suspicion.
Key quote:
“There is, I think, something larger in play, which is that climate solutions are going to drive significant changes in our economy and the president is choosing to throw in with powerful incumbent industries rather than allowing for fair competition in the country. And one part of justifying this approach publicly is to silence groups who are effectively lifting up the reality of climate change and the urgent need to address it."
— Abigail Dillen, president of Earthjustice
Why this matters:
The federal government is moving beyond rollbacks to retribution. In a moment that feels ripped from the paranoia of the McCarthy era — only this time, the stakes are climate collapse and clean air — Dillen is raising the alarm as environmental nonprofits increasingly find themselves at the sharp end of criminal investigations and smear campaigns.
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