MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Sarah Clarke, the wife of Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, is asking protesters to keep demonstrations away from the couple’s apartment, citing concerns for her family’s safety.
In an opinion column published by the Star Tribune on Monday, Clarke wrote that while she supports the right to peaceful protest, targeting the family’s home crosses a boundary.
Clarke said the family has already dealt with harassment, surveillance, and vandalism, including graffiti with the words “Kill the Mayor” scrawled on their front door.
She noted that organizers are planning a protest outside the couple’s apartment this Thursday over issues ranging from Frey’s stance on immigration enforcement to the city’s Roof Depot project.
“Protest belongs in public forums, not outside the bedrooms of young children,” Clarke wrote.
Clarke’s column arrives amid heightened fears over the safety of public officials and their families, coming just months after the June 14 fatal shootings of former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, and the near-fatal shootings of Senator John Hoffman and his wife in separate politically motivated attacks.
