"On a recent Tuesday night, about half past 8 PM, I met 19-year-old Elli outside an event at a downtown Mormon church. I was joining the teenage worshipper, who uses they/them pronouns and declined to share their last name for this story, for their evening's second act-which is slated to put far less emphasis on obedience. Our ride pulls up to the curb; Elli unhitches their necktie and climbs in."
"Their Instagram account, @elli_documents, has garnered more than 8,500 followers in the last month and change. ( This video, in which a patrolling DEA agent appears to call the Proud Boys "great guys," scored a like from actress Sarah Jessica Parker.) The page's virality has positioned Elli as something of a resistance content creator, someone who patrols DC several nights a week in search of federal authorities to document-usually with their friend Kap."
Federal law enforcement and National Guard troops remain on Washington, DC, streets indefinitely after a temporary federal takeover lapsed. Legislative efforts in the House aim to further limit DC home-rule and the district's autonomy faces growing erosion. Some residents respond by documenting and confronting federal actors in public spaces, ranging from spontaneous shout-outs at checkpoints to organized monitoring. A 19-year-old activist named Elli patrols the city several nights a week, using a viral Instagram account to record interactions with agencies like DEA and ICE. The online reach has elevated grassroots accountability efforts and amplified youth-led resistance activity.
Read at Washingtonian - The website that Washington lives by.
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