Federal agents from the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations arrested civil rights attorney and longtime Minneapolis activist Nekima Levy Armstrong on Thursday for her alleged role in organizing a protest inside Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced on social media. Bondi described Levy Armstrong’s involvement as part of a “coordinated attack on Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.”
At least two other people tied to Sunday’s demonstration were also taken into custody this week, according to federal officials, according to the Associated Press. Levy Armstrong told ABC News and other outlets she helped plan the protest to highlight concerns about one of the church’s pastors, David Easterwood, who also serves as the acting director of the local Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) field office in St. Paul. Protesters entered the Southern Baptist congregation during worship, chanting “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good” in opposition to Easterwood’s dual roles.
The Justice Department quickly opened a civil rights investigation after the service interruption. Bondi wrote that federal law enforcement executed the arrests “at my direction,” and warned that authorities “do not tolerate attacks on places of worship.”
Sunday’s protest, which drew national attention amid broader tensions over immigration policy and law enforcement in the Twin Cities, has sparked debate about where peaceful protest ends and unlawful disruption begins.
