So you might have seen this story floating around ... (1/?) abc27.com/news/local/ant…
This "story" is just a reprinted press release, which is an annoying journalism problem. Also, there's a lack of quotes so some graphs that are clearly from the release look like the authoritative writing of the news station.
But, alll that aside, I am a reporter. I was interested in seeing this trend pop in Pennsylvania after Ohio and Michigan. So, I decided to dig a little more.
I searched on Facebook for the three organizations cited as "organizing" the event. ReOpen PA and End The Lockdown PA do not seem to have a FB page at all, which is odd. I've seen it used by most grassroots groups/protests I've covered.
There is a Facebook page for "Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine", which has ~25,000 members. Okay, getting somewhere.
That page's admin are three people with the same last name, Dorr — including Christopher and Ben. So, I googled them.
Turns out, these two pop up across the upper Midwest (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Ohio, Iowa) pitching themselves as conservative grassroots activists for guns and against abortion.
An umbrella organization even has a page that lists off all of Ben's interstate connections. americanfirearmscoalition.org/board-of-direc…
And on the "Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine" page, links to "ReOpen PA" instead redirect to the Pennsylvania Firearms Association website, one of their groups.
The one direct Pa. connection I could find on the "Pennsylvanians Against Excessive Quarantine" FB page? One of two moderators appears to be the chair of the Cambria County GOP. pagop.org/about/counties…
The actual Facebook event for Monday's protest lists one other definite PA connection. State Rep. Aaron Bernstine, R-Beaver, is a host.
This took maybe a half hour of googling, and it is not at all conclusive. But whatever this protest is, it appears to have some roots out of state. And now there are actual people that could be called and asked about it. Wow, reporting!
As @Dani_PA pointed out, there -is- an ReOpen PA FB page. I must have missed it. That happens because reporting is messy, but it's better to actually do it! facebook.com/groups/2244715…
And there are now more names you can Google, so for example, there's this interview with a ReOpen PA organizer from Williamsport. talkwilliamsport.com/matthew-bellis…
To clarify, this organizer is speaking to a radio station in Williamsport, but he is from Lancaster County.
And as one last disclaimer. I don't particularly care if people protest or not. I took a Saturday to went to cover angry activists circle Gov. Tom Wolf's house to pressure him to shutdown Berks Detention Center. We live in a democracy, they can show up and make their point.
I just get very frustrated when journalism, which is also a critical part of our little democratic ecosystem, is nothing more than stenography.
Hat tip to @Pifrick13. Three quarantine groups in Virginia are using the ~exact same names.~
I deleted a previous tweet in which I shared a meme that, upon more thought, I shouldn't have shared. My apologies.
Suffice to say, it had a side by side of Health Secretary Rachel Levine now and earlier in her life. This photo was shared at least four times, and included varying transphobic captions.
On a press call, Gov. Tom Wolf said he wasn't aware this protest was happening. He didn't say if there would be any attempt to stop it, but said any protesters breaking quarantine and violating social distancing are "hurting themselves."
His comments echoed those by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer about the protest in Lansing yesterday. michiganadvance.com/2020/04/15/whi…
LebTown has this well reported story on the planned Capitol rally for Monday:
I also got in touch with Chris Dorr, he said that he is involved in Pennsylvania and Ohio politics, and helped organize opposition to Ohio's social distancing policies as well.
“These are the two states I work and live in and I don’t want either to be destroyed," Dorr said.
"If I had the time to create a page like this for every state in the country where governors are overstepping their boundaries, I would,” Dorr added.
