Minnesotans are watching a dangerous line be crossed.

Recently, community activists and civil rights leaders were arrested after a nonviolent protest at Cities Church in St. Paul. Among those arrested was Nekima Levy Armstrong, a longtime civil rights attorney and former NAACP Minneapolis president, along with Chauntyll Louisa Allen, a St. Paul School Board member, and William Kelly, a local activist.

Their alleged crime was interrupting a church service to call attention to the role of a pastor who also serves as a senior official with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), at a moment when immigrant communities are reeling from aggressive enforcement actions and the killing of Renee Good.

These arrests did not happen quietly. Federal officials publicly announced them on social media, deployed dozens of agents, and treated peaceful protest as a spectacle meant to intimidate. A federal judge even rejected attempts to charge journalist Don Lemon, who was present reporting on the protest—raising serious questions about overreach and selective prosecution.

Let’s be clear: peaceful protest is not terrorism, intimidation, or criminal conspiracy. It is a constitutional right. History shows that progress—from civil rights to labor protections—has always depended on people willing to disrupt comfort to confront injustice.

At the same time, the Department of Justice declined to open a civil rights investigation into the killing of Renee Good, the very injustice that sparked these protests. This contrast has left many Minnesotans asking why protesters are pursued aggressively while accountability for government violence is dismissed.

We call on Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and U.S. Attorney’s Office leadership in Minnesota to:

• Release the protesters if any remain detained,
• Drop all charges related to the Cities Church protest, and
• End the use of federal power to intimidate activists, journalists, and communities speaking out against immigration enforcement abuses.

Minnesota has a proud tradition of civic engagement and moral courage. We refuse to allow peaceful dissent to be criminalized while legitimate concerns about human life and justice go unanswered.

Sign this petition to stand for free speech, due process, and the right to protest without fear.

Photo by Lorie Shaull