|
According to documents posted this week at MuckRock.com, the
FBI monitored the event in 2010, finding that it carried risks
associated with crowd control and illegal drugs.
The documents were released following a 2012 public records
request by journalist Inkoo Kang. An FBI spokeswoman declined to
comment on the MuckRock.com report.
Burning Man, named for the burning of a wooden effigy that marks
the climax of the festival of art and free expression, brings
tens of thousands of people to the Black Rock Desert in northern
Nevada and adds an estimated $35 million to the local economy
each year.
Last year's event drew nearly 70,000 participants. In 2010, when
the documents were generated by the FBI, the festival attracted
about 50,000 people.
"The greatest known threat in this event is crowd control issues
and use of illegal drugs by the participants," said an FBI
document on the festival posted to MuckRock.com.
The document said the agency's Las Vegas office would work with
the Pershing County Sheriff's Office and other law enforcement
agencies to aid in preventing militant activities and handle
intelligence issues, according to the copy posted at
MuckRock.com.
The documents posted at the website were heavily redacted.
They did not make clear if the FBI had monitored Burning Man
more recently than 2010.
It is not the first time the FBI has taken an interest in the
cultural sphere. Decades ago, it investigated former Beatle John
Lennon and Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes for their political
views.
This year's Burning Man festival ends on Monday.
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis in Los Angeles; Editing by Peter
Cooney)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
|
