A striking scene unfolded outside the federal courthouse in St. Paul on Friday as former CNN anchor Don Lemon appeared for arraignment on federal civil rights charges. The atmosphere was immediately charged, not just with legal tension, but with a display of protest unlike any seen before.
As Lemon entered his plea, a group of demonstrators made a deliberately provocative statement. They brandished large sex toys, waving them in the air while chanting slogans in support of the press. The spectacle quickly transformed the courthouse steps into what one witness described as a bizarre and unsettling event.
Footage captured the unfolding chaos in real time, revealing a protest tactic that has recently emerged in the Twin Cities. This method, dubbed “Operation Dildo Blitz,” appears specifically targeted at disrupting ICE operations and drawing attention to the protesters’ cause.
Just days prior, the same controversial tactic was employed outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, another facility associated with ICE. The protest escalated into a direct confrontation, with hundreds of the objects hurled at law enforcement vehicles.
Independent journalist Ford Fischer documented the scene, showing activists scrambling into the street to retrieve the thrown items and launch them again. Some even attempted to affix suction-cup versions directly to moving vehicles, prompting officers to physically return the objects over the fence. The day concluded with dozens of arrests.
Lemon, now identifying as an independent journalist, entered a plea of not guilty. The charges stem from his alleged involvement in an incident at Cities Church in St. Paul back in January, where a group of activists disrupted a religious service.
Prosecutors contend that Lemon and others engaged in a coordinated “takeover-style attack,” intentionally interrupting the worship service. The charges against Lemon and his co-defendants include conspiracy to violate civil rights and interference with religious freedom, falling under the FACE Act.
The case promises a complex legal battle, raising questions about the limits of protest and the protection of both civil rights and religious practice. The unusual methods employed by the demonstrators have already ignited a national conversation about the evolving landscape of political activism.
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