Back in 2006, former Minnesota State Rep. Tom Emmer, then R-Delano, took the editor of a nearby community newspaper to the woodshed for suggesting in an editorial the proposed smoking ban for bars and restaurants was worthy of discussion.
Last weekend, Emmer, now a member of the U.S. House of Representatives representing Minnesota’s Sixth Congressional District, stated unequivocally people who participated in the No Kings Rallies around the state and the country protesting President Trump’s style of governance and his perceived casual, self-serving interpretation for the Constitution ‘hate’ their country.
Hate. Hate? Not like bar and restaurant staff and patrons would hate having cancer from continuously breathing second-hand smoke, but genuine hated, loathing, reviling, despicability. Hopefully, you get the point.
Politico even reported Oct. 10 Emmer told reporters Democrats in Congress had caved to the “terrorist wing” of Democratic Party.
Locally, Sharon Anderson, a resident of rural New Prague, attended the No Kings rally in St. Peter. Why? “Because I love my country and I love democracy.” She described a scene of people peacefully protesting joyfully, showing their opposition to the status quo and their love of their country and democracy.
By most accounts, the 2,600-plus No Kings protests around Minnesota and the country were attended by an estimated 7 million (about 4% of the electorate nationally) people in relatively peaceful displays by people growing weary of the president’s policies, his apparent desire to govern via decree rather than the same legislative process 45 presidents before him have utilized with varying levels of success. That is, after all, the way we have long gone about governing in the United States.
So far, the president has issued 210 executive orders in 2025. According to Politico, there have been “more than 100 lawsuits and 50 restraining orders from dozens of federal judges,” before the government reversed its decisions.
The GOP-stacked Supreme Court has announced it will hear arguments on President Trump’s tariffs Nov. 5. It is also considering whether to hear arguments on Trump’s executive order ending 157 years of birthright citizenship already blocked by multiple federal judges. His orders on suspending federal funds for ‘sanctuary cities,’ ending diversity and equity programs, mass firings of federal workers, ending collective bargaining for federal workers are among the many executive orders challenged in court.
An internet search on the importance of peaceful protests shows they have been crucial to American history by driving major social and political change through largely non-violent resistance, mobilizing broad public support, challenging unjust laws and influencing government action. Examples include the civil rights movement, where tactics like marches, sit-ins, and boycotts led to landmark legislation like the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In the 1950s and ‘60s, during the civil rights movement, non-violent tactics were employed to fight racial segregation and discrimination, like the Montgomery bus boycotts of 1955 and 1956, a year-long boycott of city buses by the African American community pressured city officials to desegregate its buses.
Sit-ins by students and activists conducted at segregated lunch counters, drawing attention to discriminatory practices and leading to arrests that highlighted the injustice of segregation laws. The history of peaceful protests includes marches like the 1963 March on Washington. During the Vietnam War, students organized widespread peaceful demonstrations on college campuses to protest the war, contributing to a national dialogue and opposition to the conflict. During the Great Depression, protesters organized hunger marches and lobbied for relief funds, which helped lead to the passage of the Social Security Act of 1935. The history of peaceful protest in Minnesota dates back to 1916 when industrial workers on Minnesota’s Iron Range went on strike for better working conditions and pay.
Nonviolent civil disobedience can powerfully display opposition to potentially flawed legislation. Research shows peaceful protests can impact change, especially when with high participation. Is there anything more American than peaceful protests to potentially bring about change?
Yes, there are exceptions. To be clear, people who destroy property and break the law during a protest as we’ve seen since 2020 should be punished within the context of our legal system. As long as they remain peaceful and non-destructive, they can pressure governments and institutions to change their policies via peaceful disruptions of business as usual.
But to challenge the legality of an executive order, to let the president, Rep. Emmer and the majority party in Washington know governance via edict is not acceptable is, so they claim, to hate America.
With all due respect, such an assertion is un-American.