'Liberate Minnesota' protest organizer: 'We want our rights restored,' despite coronavirus threat
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"Liberate Minnesota" protesters are calling for Gov. Tim Walz to reopen businesses and end a stay-at-home order aimed at controlling the spread of coronavirus, organizer Michele Even said Saturday.
Appearing on "Fox & Friends Weekend," Even said the demonstrators want their "rights restored."
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"We want to get back to work. We want to support our families. We don't want to depend on government to take care of us," she said. "And we want that [stay-at-home restriction] to end now. We don't want a slow trickle into this. We are perfectly capable of opening our own businesses and running those again and being safe in doing that."
Hundreds of protesters gathered outside Walz’s residence Friday, demanding an end to the lockdown.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}At least 400 protesters honked horns, waved American flags and donned Trump 2020 gear. Some held placards declaring "Stop the Shutdown," "We Do Not Consent" and "Walz is the Virus," according to reports from KMSP-TV/FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul.
The protests -- which started with demonstrations in North Carolina and Michigan -- has spread to New York, Ohio, Virginia and Kentucky, with more protests slated for coming days, even as federal and state officials warn that rolling back virus mitigation efforts too soon will lead to even more coronavirus cases.
President Trump has voiced his support of the groups, tweeting Friday, "LIBERATE MINNESOTA"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Walz, whose stay-at-home order runs through at least May 4, loosened some restrictions Friday by signing an executive order that allows residents to golf, boat, fish, hunt and hike as long as they follow new outdoor recreation guidelines: maintain 6 feet of social distancing, avoid crowded areas and stay close to home.
“I’d like to know what they think we could have done differently because, again, we’re leading as we were asked,” the Democratic governor said in response to Trump’s tweet. “We’ve kept Minnesotans alive, and we’re moving people back into the workforce in a safe manner."
“I would argue that we’re doing everything they’re telling us to do, but the difference is, I actually have to do it,” he added.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Is the governor doing enough?" "Fox and Friends" host Pete Hegseth asked Even.
"He is not," she replied.
"There are business owners in our state [whose] lives are being shattered. ... And opening a golf course and fishing and getting on your boat is not putting people back to work," she added. "So, in my opinion, that's just kind of a kumbaya. You know: Make everyone feel better about this when, in reality, no one is going back to work at all.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"We want to support small businesses. I support small businesses. And I put all my faith in these people that are running their own business -- if they can do it in a safe manner to protect their employees and people coming into their business," she said.
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"I have total faith in that."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}On Friday Minnesota reported one of its largest single-day increases in COVID-19 infections, with health officials tallying more than 150 new cases. Statewide, more than 2,000 people have been infected and at least 111 have died.
Fox News' Tyler Olson, Marisa Schultz, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.