Michigan: rightwing militia groups to protest
stay-at-home orders
Thursday’s
protest will be latest in a series that are now generating fears of an eruption
of political violence
Tom Perkins
in Detroit
Published
onWed 13 May 2020 11.30 BST
Rightwing
militia groups in Michigan plan to rally at the state capitol building on
Thursday to protest Democratic governor Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-at-home orders
that she put in place to slow the deadly spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Thursday’s
demonstration will be the latest in a series of protests that started as a
demonstration against the lockdown policy but are now generating fears of an
eruption of political violence.
The state
is currently investigating what the Michigan attorney general, Dana Nessel,
characterized on Monday as “credible threats” against state Democratic
politicians. Her comments followed a report of threats of violence on rightwing
social media pages.
Residents
posting in the Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine Facebook page called
for Whitmer’s assassination. “Wonder how long till she’s hit with a shotgun
blast,” one wrote. Another said they hope Thursday’s protesters are “armed to
the teeth” because “voting is too late”.
Dramatic
images from a 30 April protest showed militia members carrying assault rifles
while glaring and shouting from the galleries of the state legislature as an
emotional debate over extending a stay-at-home order took place. In response, a
black lawmaker last week came to Michigan’s capitol with an escort of armed
black citizens.
Few states
have been hit harder by the pandemic than Michigan. Wayne county, which holds
the city of Detroit, has recorded some of the US’s highest rates of infection.
Whitmer has instituted some of the country’s strictest emergency orders in
order to control the virus’ spread. Polls have consistently shown the state’s
residents approve by a wide margin of how she’s managed the crisis.
However,
some residents of rural counties contend they shouldn’t be subjected to the
orders because the infection rates in their communities are relatively low. But
that message has frequently gotten lost as the demonstrations turned into a
flashpoint in the bitter debate over gun rights, and a forum for making
political statements and threats against Democrats.
During a
state senate session on Tuesday, the state senator Mallory McMorrow said the
protests and threats are now “about spreading blood on the front lawn of this
building”.
Leadership
on both sides of the aisle have condemned the protesters’ “intimidation”
tactics and are calling on law enforcement to arrest those who brandish
weapons.
“These
folks are thugs and their tactics are despicable,” the Republican state senate
majority leader, Mike Shirkey, said during Tuesday’s session. “It is never OK
to threaten the safety or life of another person, elected or otherwise,
period.”
Democrats
called for the state to ban guns in the state capitol building. The
Republicans, however, control the legislature and are resisting that push.
The first
and the largest protest, called “Operation Gridlock”, was partly organized by
the Michigan Conservative Coalition, a grassroots political organizing group.
Meshawn Maddock, one of its founders, said on Monday that the group is no
longer involved.
Whitmer has
remained steadfast in her approach. While she has relaxed some orders in recent
weeks as the number of cases statewide has continued to drop, she extended the
state of emergency until the end of May, and has implemented a six-phase
reopening plan that could take months. At her Monday press conference, she
acknowledged the right to protest, but asked demonstrators to exercise caution
to prevent the virus from spreading.
“I would
appreciate it if others would do their part to try and lower the heat,” she
said. “If you choose to demonstrate I ask that you wear a mask and stay 6ft
apart from others.”
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