On November 7, 2020, around a thousand people gathered in Madrid to protest against the Spanish government’s Covid-19 restrictions. The demonstration was staged by the activist group Police for Freedom. Alongside far-right elements stood natural health advocates, conspiracy theorists, UFO enthusiasts and members of the dissident Chinese religious sect Falun Gong. Also present was the YouTuber and serving national police officer Jandro Lión, an activist with the Spanish far-right party Vox. Aside from him, the media reported, only a handful of actual police took part. 

“We give all groups a voice," Police For Freedom spokesperson Sonia Vescovacci told me recently. Vescovacci, a 42-year-old national police officer currently on leave, first got involved with Police for Freedom after creating a YouTube channel focused on the government’s use of law enforcement to manage the country’s coronavirus response. She says that she does not trust politicians or parties and, when asked about her ties to Lión, stated that he is not part of Police for Freedom and attended the protest at her request, in order to video it.

Newspaper and television reports have characterized protesters like Vescovacci as “negacionista” (denialists), but she insists that she “denies nothing”. Instead, she says, the idea behind Police for Freedom is to hold to account a government that is "leading the country to ruin.”

“A lot of people are suffering, and they are using the police precisely to that end. We do not agree with this,” she said.