The Michigan Conservative Coalition recently issued an open letter to Lansing Mayor Andy Schor warning that upcoming protests in Lansing are not associated with the group. The MCC organized the “Operation Gridlock” car rally last week protesting Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s lockdown orders.
The rally drew thousands of cars to Lansing on April 15 to protest Whitmer’s most recent lockdown orders, which restrict travel within the state and the sale of items like gardening or flooring supplies in large stores. The protest also included several people on the lawn of the Capitol, which the MCC said was a different protest that co-opted their own.
“It’s unfortunate that an unrelated group chose to crash our vehicle rally and invite people to protest on the Capitol lawn,” the MCC said in its open letter. “However, those few hundred can’t take away from the tens of thousands who stayed in their vehicles. Our guidelines to participants were modeled after the ‘Stay Safe’ guidelines for social distancing.”
The letter also praised local law enforcement for clarifying that the rally did not block entrances to Sparrow Hospital and for only issuing a single citation during the rally.
“Our volunteers worked hard to make sure that those attending complied with the relevant aspects of the Governor’s ‘Stay Safe’ program,” said Marian Sheridan, a MCC co-founder, in a statement. “Our guidelines to participate in Operation Gridlock were widely communicated to potential participants using social media, email and text messaging. Overwhelmingly, Operation Gridlock participants followed those guidelines.”
The letter went on to say that the MCC has heard of future protests currently being planned that are unrelated to the MCC, although they have adopted the “Operation Gridlock” name.
“These events are co-opting our event name by using titles such as ‘Operation Gridlock 2.0,’” the letter said. “We inequivalently [sic] assure you Michigan Conservative Coalition is not involved in any way with such events. We do not support or encourage attendance to these protests. Quite the opposite, we will be communicating in various ways that citizens should not participate.”
The MCC said it felt that Whitmer had heard its protest and called on the governor to reopen Michigan’s economy.
“Michigan citizens also deserve a plan to get back to work before the economy is damaged beyond repair,” Sheridan said. “Numerous private sector outdoor jobs like landscaping, nurseries, excavation and lawn services are shut down, while public sector employees routinely perform the exact same work in plain sight. Construction — including some road repair — is totally shut down, though not a single neighboring state is doing that. Michigan needs a better plan to get back to work.”
Read the letter:
—
Jordyn Pair is a reporter with the Michigan Star. Follow her on Twitter at @JordynPair. Email her at [email protected].
Background Photo “Lansing City Hall” by [[:en:User:{{{1}}}|{{{1}}}]] . CC BY 3.0.
