Don Lemon speculated about why a churchgoer in Minnesota seemed confused about why he wasn’t protesting against a group of anti-ICE activists that disrupted a Sunday service. This incident has led to criminal charges against him.
The CNN anchor, who has faced his share of job losses, seemed ready to call the St. Paul’s Cities Church attendees naive back in January. They mistook him for a protester even after he clearly stated he was there as a journalist.
“It’s strange because I made it clear that wasn’t the case, yet they kept insisting,” Lemon shared with former coworker Jim Acosta on “The Jim Acosta Show.”
“And I think they were looking at me. Most of the protesters were black, so perhaps they assumed that because I’m black. I repeatedly said, ‘I’m not a protester. I’m here to cover the protests. I’m not with them.'”
Having been dismissed from CNN in April 2023 due to allegations of misogyny, Lemon hinted that the churchgoers might not have grasped his role.
“For some reason, they just didn’t get it,” he remarked. “I don’t see why that was so hard to figure out.”
In a clip shown by Acosta from January 18, Lemon and a group of demonstrators interrupted the church service as part of a protest related to the death of Lennie Goode. He admitted on camera to conducting “reconnaissance” with activist organizations beforehand.
“What we’re doing here is after the operation, you’ll see it live. These are surprise operations, and I can’t reveal where they’ll happen,” he explained.
On January 30, he was arrested in Los Angeles and charged with participating in protests under the pretense of journalism.
Lemon, who pleaded not guilty, made a confident statement outside a Minnesota courthouse after his arraignment on February 13, saying, “I will not be silent.”
He was detained while covering the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, among nine individuals arrested in relation to the protests.
