On a typical blustery Minnesota winter January day with windchill bringing the temperature down to the normal zero degrees for this time of the year, a group of nearly 25 protestors gathered at the only stoplight in Fillmore County, Minn.
Chatfield, Minn., known as the gateway to Bluff Country, presents a golden opportunity for protestors to take a stance from the park every Wednesday afternoon as people drive home from work. They want to keep getting their message out.
On January 14, from 4 pm to 5 pm, Fillmore County DFL Communications Director Julie Fryer, a Chatfield resident, organized another protesting event. Fryer shared that they started protesting in April of 2025, with upwards of 40 participants. Over the course of last year they averaged around 20 protestors.
They persisted with protesting for approximately 40 consecutive weeks until the weather became unbearable in December and they had to take a break. They are reconvening their demonstration every Wednesday, but starting earlier due to daylight savings time.
Julie Fryer – Chatfield
Fryer expressed her concerns. “Right now, in particular, we’re really concerned about what’s happening to the immigrants in our community. And legal or otherwise, they’re being grabbed because of their skin color. It’s not OK. We’ve also heard reports of legal constitutional observers also being taken and that’s against the law. We’ve not had reports of ICE in Chatfield, but heard of it basically in every community around us. So one of the reasons we are out here is we want to make sure that the community knows that there are people here who will protect them if we have to.”
The DFL protestors originally made their presence known in Chatfield when they felt the tariffs were impacting small businesses and farmers. “We knew it was going to make life really bad,” added Fryer.
Another reason they are protesting is because they feel their voice isn’t heard by Congressman Brad Finstad. “We feel like we are not represented. You can never reach Brad Finstad. He doesn’t answer his phone. He doesn’t have town hall meetings. We have no way to communicate with our congressman. He is ignoring us and… he’s definitely starting to become more extreme with the things he’s supporting. And he supports what ICE is doing right now. Minnesota is being terrorized right now. That’s what I’m hearing from communities all over the state. They’re everywhere. They’re in Faribault. They’re in Bemidji. So, we are just here to support the folks that are scared to come out,” concluded Fryer.
Ben Bisbach – Canton
Ben Bisbach, a resident of Canton, Minn., shared why he is standing out in the cold alongside DFL protestors. “The rule of law and Constitutional order that we all took for granted is breaking down at pretty fundamental levels. And, I think that we’re at a point where people live in two different realities. And, I see people defending things that are an anathema to everything that I’ve known from the Republican party under Trump. There is no recognition to the Repulican party of my parents for example – the Reagan era conservatism they believed in and raised me in. I feel like it’s do or die at this point. Like, we’re not going to be able to put this genie back into the bottle. And, if we lose. We already had one coup attempt. They told us, explicitly, what they’re going to do in November. But, we’re in two separate media silos, so people just don’t want to believe it. And, I don’t know what the answer is. All I can do is stand out here with a sign. I’d stand out here for a thousand years if I thought I could undo what’s being done to this country. And, that’s not me saying that as a liberal. That’s me saying that as an American.”
Linda O’Connor – Preston
From rural Preston, Linda O’Connor protested with her sign for several reasons. “I’m out here for my kids and especially my grandkids. I want them to have what I had, and they won’t at this point.” O’Connor is concerned with immigration. “Yes, I’m on the side of the police, but ICE is not the police. ICE can only do limited immigration. They can’t drag people off the streets. Get into their cars. Go to schools. The kids! They can’t do that. And, nobody is stopping them. We are in a Nazi Germany, and a lot of us feel that’s happening right now. Right in front of our eyes. And, so we’re doing our freedom to say what we want and what we think. And, the world is with us. And, I’ve traveled and I know that. I’ve talked to people from many other countries the past few years. The world is against Trump. I have friends in Canada and they’re saying our doors open, and I can’t really move there. But, it’s just a very tragic time, and it’s very upsetting.”
Adrienne Sweeney – Lanesboro
Lanesboro resident Adrienne Sweeney had protested in Rushford, Minn. many times, so this was her first time standing alongside DFLers in Chatfield. “I’m out here because what is happening here in our state is utterly un-American and it has to stop.”
Sweeney continued to share, “Murdering citizens, dragging citizens out of their homes, dragging people out of their cars, battering rams into homes. Those sorts of things are un-American. Stopping people at gas stations, tackling them and beating them senseless and taking them to the hospital and not leaving them at the hospital. Killing people in their cars. Going into schools. These things aren’t American, and we all know that regardless of our party, regardless of our politics. What’s happening in the Twin Cities. What’s happening in Rochester. What’s happening in Portland and Los Angeles and who knows where next. This isn’t America. This isn’t America. I’m terribly, terribly concerned with the state of our government. I’m concerned about pedophiles being in office. I’m concerned about our healthcare. I’m concerned about our economy. Every one of these things, we’re all concerned about. And, sadly, heartbreakingly, every time, every week, there’s a new atrocity that galvanizes us. Today, it’s a dead woman who was shot point-blank as she tried to drive away from not even a police officer. That’s today’s horror. Who knows what the next horror will be. It just doesn’t seem like it’s going to stop, because they just keep pummeling the Constitution. Frankly, they’re just ripping it to shreds, and it’s just heartbreaking.”
On this frigid Tuesday afternoon, the crowd of DFL protestors gained some honks from passersby – recognition for their efforts. Everyone present had their reasons, which seemed to have a consistent message about where they stand with the current state of affairs. For more information about the Fillmore County DFL, readers can visit www.fillmorecountydfl.com.
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