A woman was arrested Tuesday evening after attending a planned protest at a park playground closed due to concerns about the new coronavirus, and asking a police officer to arrest her.
The arrest of Sara Brady, 40, was captured in the course of a roughly 45-minute video posted on the Idaho Freedom Foundation’s Facebook page, which has since been removed. Brady is the head of Health Freedom Idaho, an anti-vaccination group that has been calling for people to disobey the governor’s stay-home order over coronavirus, in partnership with IFF, a Libertarian think tank active in the state’s politics. The video, posted Tuesday night, depicted a group of parents who took their children to a playground at Meridian’s Julius M. Memorial Kleiner Park. The city of Meridian closed playgrounds last month in an effort to help stop the spread of the virus.
In the video, Brady and others are seen arguing with Meridian police officers about the constitutionality of the decision to close the playgrounds. At least one other man — who does not appear to be an officer — is filmed arguing with them as well. The officers in the video repeatedly asked the parents to take their children and leave the playground before Brady turns, puts her arms behind her back, and asks the officer to arrest her.
Watch the entire, staged dust-up below:
Meet Wing Nut Sara:
“I didn’t wake up today thinking, I’m taking my kids to the park to get arrested — but when tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty!” Brady said to supporters following her release. “We have a duty to stand up to tyranny, or we’re gonna lose our republic.”
- Anti-vaccine activist with connections to several far-right groups in Idaho.
- 2017 got into a ‘dust up’ with her son’s school over vaccinating him.
- Participated in an organized protest on Tuesday against the governor’s stay-at-home order.
- Other attendees included other ‘fine people’ from IdaHO:
- Anti-vaccine group Health Freedom Alliance
- Gun rights group Idaho Second Amendment Alliance
- The Idaho Freedom Foundation, a far-right group that wields significant power in the state.
- Alex Jones loves him some Sara.
- The Second Amendment Alliance organized a rally against her arrest at city hall.
- They also held a protest in front of the arresting officer’s home. Four officers had to stand guard.
- Attendees included: Ammon Bundy, who led the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in 2016.
