In the Arab-American neighborhood outside of Chicago where director Assia Boundaoui grew up, most of her neighbors think they have been under surveillance for over a decade. While investigating their experiences, Assia uncovers tens of thousands of pages of FBI documents that prove her hometown was the subject of one of the largest counterterrorism investigations ever conducted in the U.S. before 9/11, code-named “Operation Vulgar Betrayal.” With unprecedented access, The Feeling of Being Watched weaves the personal and the political as it follows the filmmaker’s examination of why her community fell under blanket government surveillance. Assia struggles to disrupt the government secrecy shrouding what happened and takes the FBI to federal court to compel them to make the records they collected about her community public. In the process, she confronts long-hidden truths about the FBI’s relationship to her community. The Feeling of Being Watched follows Assia as she pieces together this secret FBI operation, while grappling with the effects of a lifetime of surveillance on herself and her family.

Boulder SURJ is proud to present the next event of our Justice Film Series! Doors will open at 6PM, and we will be meeting in the Canyon Theater in the Boulder Public Library. The programming will begin at 6:15 sharp, so plan on arriving early to allow time for parking and finding snacks & seating before the movie starts.

We will have two-three excellent community facilitators to lead conversation after the showing, to be determined as of right now.

This event is FREE, though donations are welcome so that we can contiue our programming into 2025 and keep paying our filmmakers and facillitators while maintaining a zero cost experience and remain open to all who would like to come! If you are able, please donate through our 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor, Longmont Community Foundation.

Contact the host of The Feeling of Being Watched viewing and conversation