During her acceptance of the Democratic Nomination for President in 2024, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke explicitly about the potential mayhem that would ensue if President Donald Trump were reelected to a second term.
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In one of her now many “I Told You So” moments, she predicted that Trump would use his executive powers to target journalists and protesters who oppose him.
“Consider what he intends to do if we give him power again. Consider his explicit intent to jail journalists, political opponents, and anyone he sees as the enemy,” Harris said.
Harris’ words now rang truer than ever after the stunning arrest of reporter Don Lemon. In late January, Lemon, independent journalist and Root 100 honoree, was arrested by federal agents in Beverly Hills for his coverage of an anti-ICE protest of the January 18 demonstration at Cities Church.
Georgia Fort, another Black independent journalist, was also arrested by federal agents at her home in St. Paul, Minn. The arrest, which Fort documented via a Facebook livestream, was also in connection with her coverage of demonstrations at Cities Church.
As a prominent social activist, Rev. Dr. William Barber II is no stranger to being arrested and jailed for protesting. In response to Lemon, he shared how dangerous it is for Black journalists covering ICE incidents and how the right to free speech under the law is now under attack at the behest of the DOJ.
“Don Lemon & Georgia Fort — two Black journalists—were arrested for reporting on a protest in Minneapolis. Trump is using the DOJ to try to scare the American people,” Barber told The Root. “This department was founded in 1870 to protect and enforce the post-slavery civil rights law. Today, it is being abused to execute injustice. The DOJ’s motto is supposed to be, ‘Who prosecutes on behalf of justice,’ but it’s been debased to ‘Who charges on behalf of vengeance.”
Following his release, Lemon told reporters about his harrowing experience of being detained by federal agents and held in custody.
“Last night, the DOJ sent a team of federal agents to arrest me in the middle of the night for something that I’ve been doing for the last 30 years, and that is covering the news,” Lemon said.”The First Amendment of the Constitution protects that work for me and for countless other journalists who do what I do. I stand with all of them, and I will not be silenced. I look forward to my day in court.”
On his podcast “The Don Lemon Show”, Lemon also spoke about the danger the media is facing unless it genuflects before the Trump administration.
“It may have started with people having their due process rights violated on the streets, violently violated on the streets. But now they’re trying to silence journalists. And I will not be silenced,” Lemon said on his show.
After her release, Fort told CNN’s Anderson Cooper that she will “continue to tell the stories of my community” and that the arrest have sent “a chilling message” to the media in the US.
“As journalists, we never want to be the story,” Fort said. “But unfortunately, I did find myself in a predicament where I felt that I needed to be able to tell my own story, that I needed the world to see that journalism is on trial.”
When the Trump administration deployed more than 2,000 federal agents to the Twin Cities in response to protests, it was a display of unchecked federal authority. Since their arrival, ICE agents have taken the lives of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, both unarmed, anti-ICE protesters. Without question, the Trump administration has established a dangerous precedent by allowing the Department of Justice to suppress political dissent.
For Black media, this is a clarion call to action and resistance. Despite the prevailing and sometimes seemingly insurmountable challenges, our voices are more necessary than ever.
As we celebrate the 1oo year anniversary of Black History month, silence can never be an option, and injustice can not have the final word.
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