Federal agents arrest Minnesota candidate, journalists in anti-ICE church protest — all are Black
Federal authorities arrested Jamael Lundy, a Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) state Senate candidate in Minnesota, along with other protesters and independent journalists for their roles in a protest at a St. Paul church earlier this month.
Federal authorities arrested Jamael Lundy, a Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) state Senate candidate in Minnesota, along with other protesters and independent journalists for their roles in a protest at a St. Paul church earlier this month.
On Friday morning, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Lundy’s arrests along with Black Lives Matter Minnesota co-founder Trahern Jeen Crews and independent journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort via X.
“At my direction, early this morning federal agents arrested Don Lemon, Trahern Jeen Crews, Georgia Fort, and Jamael Lydell Lundy, in connection with the coordinated attack on Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota,” Bondi wrote.
Fort broadcast the moments before her arrest on Instagram as federal law enforcement knocked on her door. Lemon, a notable former CNN anchor, was preparing to cover the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles when he was arrested, according to his attorney Abbe Lowell. Both Fort and Lemon filmed the Jan. 18 protest at Cities Church in St. Paul and did not visibly interrupt the church service.
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Lundy is running in Senate District 65, which is currently held by retiring state Sen. Sandy Pappas (DFL-St. Paul). According to his campaign website, he is a “lifelong progressive DFLer” and DFL organizer. His previous roles include being an aide for U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN), being a field organizer for the late state Rep. Melissa Hortman (DFL-Brooklyn Park) and helping the state DFL organize and legislate in response to the 2020 murder of George Floyd.
His wife, St. Paul City Council Member Anika Bowie, said in a statement that she stands with her husband and that his “militarized and traumatic” arrest was about “intimidation” against activists.
“This moment fits a deeply troubling pattern we are seeing across the country — the use of federal power to silence dissent, to target political leaders, and to criminalize those who stand up for their communities,” Bowie said. “My husband has spent his life organizing, serving, and advocating for dignity, fairness, and opportunity for all families. That commitment should not make someone a target.”
statement from anika bowie, st. paul city council member, on the arrest of her husband jamael lundy this morning by federal agents for the protest at a church in st. paul led by an ICE agent. she calls his arrest “militarized and traumatic”
On Jan. 18, protesters and Black Lives Matter Minnesota members went to Cities Church because David Easterwood, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) field officer for St. Paul, is also listed as a pastor at the church. In a demonstration named “Operation Pullup” by organizers, the protesters interrupted the service with chants of “ICE out!” The protest came two weeks after ICE agent Jonathan Ross shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Good in neighboring Minneapolis.
Twelve days after the protest, Bondi and the Trump administration still try to paint it as an attack on religious liberties and specifically against Christians. On his social media platform Truth Social, President Donald Trump called the protesters “highly trained” and “troublemakers who should be thrown in jail, or thrown out of the Country.”
All four people arrested Friday morning are Black. They join three other protesters arrested last week; two out of three of them are Black.
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