Latest news with #RussellJohnson
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Seattle pastor details wild scene after worship event 'swarmed' by protesters
A Seattle pastor is speaking out after violent protests engulfed a worship event earlier in May and persisted in a follow-up event on Tuesday outside City Hall. Organizers hosted a Mayday USA rally at Cal Anderson Park in Seattle on Saturday, which The Pursuit NW Pastor Russell Johnson helped lead. The event reportedly offered free haircuts, free bike giveaways and free groceries for the community as well as time for prayer and worship. The event was later "swarmed" by protesters, some of whom reportedly threw urine-filled water balloons at attendees, and more than 20 arrests were made. "[Saturday's] event has, of course, been labeled by the media as some sort of anti-LGBT-type rally, and it wasn't," Johnson said Thursday on "The Ingraham Angle." Fbi To Probe Claims Of 'Targeted Violence' Against Religious Group After Evangelicals' Protest In Seattle "We were swarmed by hundreds of Antifa militants... They were throwing water-balloons filled with urine at Christians who stood in the park and were assaulted for the high crime of worshiping Jesus in a public space," Johnson told Fox News host Laura Ingraham. Read On The Fox News App After police reported multiple arrests at Saturday's rally, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell's office released a statement defending the LGBTQ community and protesters while criticizing the "far-right rally" for provoking the violent reaction. "Seattle is proud of our reputation as a welcoming, inclusive city for LGBTQ+ communities, and we stand with our trans neighbors when they face bigotry and injustice," the statement read. "Today's far-right rally was held here for this very reason — to provoke a reaction by promoting beliefs that are inherently opposed to our city's values, in the heart of Seattle's most prominent LGBTQ+ neighborhood." Seattle Mayor Accused Of Lying After Blaming Christian Rally For Park Violence While the mayor seemed to pin blame on the Christian group, Johnson rejected the notion that the Mayday event was designed to "provoke" a reaction. While a portion of the rally provided a space for parents and individuals who had de-transitioned to share their testimony and highlight concerns with transgender ideology, Johnson said it was done in an "uplifting, hopeful, God can change anything, Jesus has the power to transform your life" way. "It wasn't this Westboro Baptist, hateful rhetoric. It was people sharing a hopeful, optimistic outlook on what it looks like when God begins to work in your life," he told Ingraham. In response to the mayor, Johnson helped organize an event at Seattle City Hall on Tuesday, which he said was met with "similar" opposition from protesters. "Antifa was out in force. They bloodied and beat up good church people who stood in line to try to get into a rally to sing hymns and worship songs and pray for the direction of the city," Johnson said. The pastor noted that after announcing Tuesday's rally, he was "inundated" with support from people beyond Christian and conservative circles who wanted to "stand with Christians at City Hall because we believe in the First Amendment." Harrell's press secretary, Callie Craighead, previously told Fox News Digital that Harrell "remains steadfast in his denouncement of rhetoric from groups whose messages promote exclusion, intolerance, and undermine the dignity and rights of any community member — particularly those that are marginalized, like our LGBTQ+ community." Craighead added at the time: "As a Christian himself, the mayor is guided by the Christian values of love and justice, and his comments have specifically addressed ideologies that are in contrast to Seattle's commitment to being a welcoming city for all. Like any faith community, Christianity is not a monolith — and many Christians throughout Seattle do not hold the beliefs expressed by the organizers of the Mayday rally." Johnson criticized Harrell's stance, arguing the Seattle mayor has "terminated his political career by releasing those statements." "It's a clown show with these leftist, agitator-supporting politicians who are so out of touch with a wide swath of their constituents," he said. Harrell's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment for this article. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said Tuesday he had requested an investigation into allegations of "targeted violence" against religious groups after the rally at Seattle City Hall in response to the mayor purportedly blaming Christian activists for igniting a weekend demonstration that turned violent. Fox News Digital's Lindsay Kornick contributed to this report. Original article source: Seattle pastor details wild scene after worship event 'swarmed' by protesters
Fox News
3 days ago
- General
- Fox News
Seattle pastor details wild scene after worship event 'swarmed' by protesters
A Seattle pastor is speaking out after violent protests engulfed a worship event earlier in May and persisted in a follow-up event on Tuesday outside City Hall. Organizers hosted a Mayday USA rally at Cal Anderson Park in Seattle on Saturday, which The Pursuit NW Pastor Russell Johnson helped lead. The event reportedly offered free haircuts, free bike giveaways and free groceries for the community as well as time for prayer and worship. The event was later "swarmed" by protesters, some of whom reportedly threw urine-filled water balloons at attendees, and more than 20 arrests were made. "[Saturday's] event has, of course, been labeled by the media as some sort of anti-LGBT-type rally, and it wasn't," Johnson said Thursday on "The Ingraham Angle." "We were swarmed by hundreds of Antifa militants... They were throwing water-balloons filled with urine at Christians who stood in the park and were assaulted for the high crime of worshiping Jesus in a public space," Johnson told Fox News host Laura Ingraham. After police reported multiple arrests at Saturday's rally, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell's office released a statement defending the LGBTQ community and protesters while criticizing the "far-right rally" for provoking the violent reaction. "Seattle is proud of our reputation as a welcoming, inclusive city for LGBTQ+ communities, and we stand with our trans neighbors when they face bigotry and injustice," the statement read. "Today's far-right rally was held here for this very reason — to provoke a reaction by promoting beliefs that are inherently opposed to our city's values, in the heart of Seattle's most prominent LGBTQ+ neighborhood." While the mayor seemed to pin blame on the Christian group, Johnson rejected the notion that the Mayday event was designed to "provoke" a reaction. While a portion of the rally provided a space for parents and individuals who had de-transitioned to share their testimony and highlight concerns with transgender ideology, Johnson said it was done in an "uplifting, hopeful, God can change anything, Jesus has the power to transform your life" way. "It wasn't this Westboro Baptist, hateful rhetoric. It was people sharing a hopeful, optimistic outlook on what it looks like when God begins to work in your life," he told Ingraham. In response to the mayor, Johnson helped organize an event at Seattle City Hall on Tuesday, which he said was met with "similar" opposition from protesters. "Antifa was out in force. They bloodied and beat up good church people who stood in line to try to get into a rally to sing hymns and worship songs and pray for the direction of the city," Johnson said. The pastor noted that after announcing Tuesday's rally, he was "inundated" with support from people beyond Christian and conservative circles who wanted to "stand with Christians at City Hall because we believe in the First Amendment." Harrell's press secretary, Callie Craighead, previously told Fox News Digital that Harrell "remains steadfast in his denouncement of rhetoric from groups whose messages promote exclusion, intolerance, and undermine the dignity and rights of any community member — particularly those that are marginalized, like our LGBTQ+ community." Craighead added at the time: "As a Christian himself, the mayor is guided by the Christian values of love and justice, and his comments have specifically addressed ideologies that are in contrast to Seattle's commitment to being a welcoming city for all. Like any faith community, Christianity is not a monolith — and many Christians throughout Seattle do not hold the beliefs expressed by the organizers of the Mayday rally." Johnson criticized Harrell's stance, arguing the Seattle mayor has "terminated his political career by releasing those statements." "It's a clown show with these leftist, agitator-supporting politicians who are so out of touch with a wide swath of their constituents," he said. Harrell's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment for this article. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said Tuesday he had requested an investigation into allegations of "targeted violence" against religious groups after the rally at Seattle City Hall in response to the mayor purportedly blaming Christian activists for igniting a weekend demonstration that turned violent.
Fox News
6 days ago
- General
- Fox News
Seattle mayor accused of lying after blaming Christian rally for park violence
Organizers of the Christian rally that Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell blamed for a violent riot at a local park pushed back against his claims that they intentionally provoked outrage on Tuesday. After police reported multiple arrests at the MayDayUSA rally at Cal Anderson Park on Saturday, Harrell's office released a statement defending the LGBTQ community and protesters while criticizing the "far-right rally" for provoking the violent reaction. "Seattle is proud of our reputation as a welcoming, inclusive city for LGBTQ+ communities, and we stand with our trans neighbors when they face bigotry and injustice," the statement read. "Today's far-right rally was held here for this very reason – to provoke a reaction by promoting beliefs that are inherently opposed to our city's values, in the heart of Seattle's most prominent LGBTQ+ neighborhood." Though Harrell's office suggested the rally was intentionally held at Cal Anderson Park to stir up controversy, pastor Russell Johnson, who helped to lead the event, said the location was suggested to them by the city. "The @MayorofSeattle caught in yet another lie. He said we intentionally chose Cal Anderson Park for our worship rally to 'provoke a reaction by promoting beliefs that are opposed to Seattle's values.' Oops. He must have forgot about the email HIS OFFICE sent us on March 7th denying our permit to gather at Pike Place and SUGGESTING we go to Cal Anderson Park instead," Johnson wrote on X. Johnson provided email screenshots showing that their initial location, Pike Place, was rejected for being unable to "successfully facilitate" the event. They also showed that Cal Anderson Park was suggested as an alternative option. Fellow preacher Ross Johnston also told Fox News Digital that their first location was rejected, and they then chose Cal Anderson Park after the city's suggestion. He condemned the mayor's statement for taking the protesters' side to "make things worse." "His reasoning, of course, is that our values inherently opposed the values of Seattle," Johnston said. "Now, when I hear that, my question is what values is he referring to? Is he referring to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights? Because I don't know if he knows this, but he's actually an elected politician in the United States of America. And in the 250-year history of the nation of America, though we might not all see eye-to-eye on every single matter, or even religion for that matter, we all do agree on having the same rights, right?" In a statement to Fox News Digital, Harrell's office confirmed that the rally's Pike Place location was rejected and that a city staffer "shared several parks that had potential availability." However, Harrell's press secretary, Callie Craighead, pointed out that Cal Anderson Park was the rally organizers' first choice after being given other options, providing Fox News Digital with a copy of a permit from March. Craighead also suggested the rally organizers "directly explained their provocative thinking" when choosing locations by citing a pre-rally video depicting Johnston describing their Pike Place location as "Antifa's headquarters" and "where thousands showed up for BLM." "Mayor Harrell remains steadfast in his denouncement of rhetoric from groups whose messages promote exclusion, intolerance, and undermine the dignity and rights of any community member—particularly those that are marginalized, like our LGBTQ+ community," Craighead said. She added, "As a Christian himself, the mayor is guided by the Christian values of love and justice, and his comments have specifically addressed ideologies that are in contrast to Seattle's commitment to being a welcoming city for all. Like any faith community, Christianity is not a monolith—and many Christians throughout Seattle do not hold the beliefs expressed by the organizers of the Mayday rally." In response to the mayor's original statement, Johnston and Johnson launched a protest rally outside Seattle City Hall on Tuesday, calling for his resignation. Johnston also emphasized that he "100%" condemned violence. "We want nobody to be arrested. We want nobody to be hurt or end up in the hospital. Absolutely not. We condone all violence 100% of the time," Johnston told Fox News Digital.
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump border wall is on New Mexico ranchers' wish list
As the conflict between U.S. law enforcement and the cartels continues, some New Mexico residents are hopeful that Trump will be successful in finishing the border wall to ensure their safety. Those who remain hopeful include ranchers Brandy and Russell Johnson, who are living just outside the village of Columbus, New Mexico, on a cattle ranch that borders Chihuahua, Mexico. They say they are eager to see the restart of the border wall construction under the new Trump administration. The couple recalled to ABC News a time in 2019, during Trump's first term, when funding came through for new construction on the border wall. The Johnsons fought to be included in the plans, with construction expected to seal up close to 9 miles of the border. "It's Oct. 20, 2019, and I received a call today from United States Border Patrol agents advising that we had yet another vehicle drive through," Russell Johnson said. "This vehicle made its entry through the barbed wire portion of the fence that we share with Mexico. Nobody should have to deal with this kind of activity on their ranch or anywhere for that matter." However, the Johnsons, who both have law enforcement backgrounds, never expected to become embroiled in a political conflict over the border. Months after construction began on their wall section, former President Joe Biden was elected. He promised a more empathetic approach to immigration. By March 2021, he halted the construction project, froze funding, and terminated the emergency declaration made by the first Trump administration along the border. According to Russell Johnson, a former U.S. Border Patrol agent, all the contractors working on the border wall found themselves in a state of uncertainty. Their equipment had been fully operational, but now the site resembled a ghost town, with all the machinery and materials abandoned. "It's probably millions of dollars, considering the amount of steel and what steel costs, it's probably millions of dollars that's been sitting there for over four years at this point, that you know, the taxpayer paid for, and it's just been sitting out there," Russell Johnson said, referring to the border wall building materials that have been sitting on his property since December 2020. During the Biden administration, the funding and staffing for the Department of Homeland Security were decreased. In 2024, a bipartisan border security bill aimed at enhancing resources for the department failed to pass after Trump lobbied Senate Republicans to oppose the bill. "As the leader of our party, there is zero chance I will support this horrible, open borders betrayal of America," Trump said at his Nevada rally in 2024. "It's not going to happen." It's a move that Democrats have criticized as a political stunt. "This bill would save lives and bring order to the border," Biden said at State of the Union address in March 2024. "I'm told my predecessor called Republicans in Congress and demanded they block the bill. He viewed it would be a political win for me and a political loser for him." The Johnsons believe that limited border patrol agents in the field made them more vulnerable. Additionally, a gap in the border wall, which is less than a mile long, has increased their risk of becoming a target for trafficking. "It's one of those deals that if you could take the politics out of it, we could have it fixed overnight," Russell Johnson said. "And that's what's been extremely frustrating to me, is I feel like we're just a political pawn down here, used by both sides at times, to push one narrative or the other." The Johnsons are hopeful that Trump can fulfill his promise to resume construction on the border wall. However, they understand that this requires funding and bipartisan support. "And I think if, and I've preached this to several people, if we could all just sit down at a table, there's going to be some common ground we can find," Russell Johnson said. Trump border wall is on New Mexico ranchers' wish list originally appeared on
