Responding to the arrest of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort over their reporting on an anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) protest at a church in Minnesota, Amnesty International USA’s National Director of Programs, Tarah Demant, said:
“U.S. authorities must immediately release journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort. Journalism is not a crime. Reporting on protests is not a crime. Arresting journalists for their reporting is a clear example of an authoritarian practice.
“The arrests today of Don Lemon and Georgia Fort for covering an anti-ICE protest are a blatant attempt to intimidate others from covering criticism of the administration and its policies. The arrests also follow repeated attempts by senior officials to label people who record ICE activities as domestic terrorists.
“Time and time again we are seeing the Trump administration clamping down on free speech rather than upholding human rights. Black and Brown journalists have been particularly targeted for exercising their rights to freedom of expression.
“Make no mistake, the U.S. government’s attempts to silence journalists are a critical threat to our human rights.”
Background
Last week, a federal magistrate judge and an appeals court rejected the administration’s attempt to arrest Lemon, prompting Attorney General Pam Bondi to direct federal agents to arrest him today.
Amnesty International has documented a string of significant attacks on press freedom in the U.S. over the past year. Federal agents have verbally and physically attacked journalists covering ICE protests, and the administration deported reporter Mario Guevara, searched journalists’ homes, and weaponized the Federal Communications Commission to retaliate against critical coverage.
The administration has also hand-picked outlets to cover its activities, including barring the Associated Press and restricting media access to the Pentagon unless journalists waive their First Amendment protections. It has also slashed public funding for NPR, PBS, Voice of America and other government-funded media.
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