By Zoila Palma: Independent journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort were taken into custody following a protest at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, where dozens of anti–Immigration and Customs Enforcement demonstrators interrupted a church service on January 18.
Lemon and Fort were live-streaming the event as the protest unfolded, leading to tense confrontations inside the church, CNN reports.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said four people were arrested in connection with what she described as a “coordinated attack,” including Lemon and Fort.
Lemon, a former CNN anchor who now hosts his own online show, was arrested late Thursday night in a Beverly Hills hotel lobby while in Los Angeles to cover the Grammy Awards.
His attorney, Abbe Lowell, said Lemon faces two federal charges: conspiring to violate constitutional rights and violating the FACE Act, which bars interference with religious practice. Lowell said Lemon was engaged in “constitutionally protected work” and vowed to fight the charges.
Fort was arrested early Friday at her home in Minnesota, an encounter she documented in a Facebook Live stream before surrendering to federal agents. Her family demanded her immediate release, with her teenage daughter saying Fort was not a protester or activist but a journalist documenting events in her community. Fort said her arrest stemmed solely from filming the protest as a member of the media.
The arrests drew swift condemnation from press freedom advocates, civil rights groups, and public officials.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison called the situation “deeply troubling,” saying journalists should not be treated as criminals for doing their jobs.
The post International News: Journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort taken into custody after Minnesota church protest appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Zoila Palma: Independent journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort were taken into custody following a protest at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, where dozens of anti–Immigration and Customs Enforcement demonstrators interrupted a church service on January 18. Lemon and Fort were live-streaming the event as the protest unfolded, leading to tense confrontations inside
The post International News: Journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort taken into custody after Minnesota church protest appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.