Legal observers (often trained through groups like the National Lawyers Guild) attend protests and enforcement actions to watch, document, and later support accountability. They do not “run the protest” or direct participants.

In Minnesota and elsewhere, advocates and journalists have reported a pattern where federal immigration enforcement presence has included pressure campaigns aimed at discouraging observation itself, including threats of arrest, surveillance, and attempts to brand observers as “extremists” or “terrorists.”

A common intimidation line is: “If you’re watching or filming, you’re obstructing.” That claim is misleading.

In general, observing and recording government agents in public is protected by the First Amendment, as long as you’re not physically interfering with their work (courts describe this as “reasonable time, place, and manner” limits).

So: watching is not obstruction. Interference can be, but simply documenting from a lawful position is not automatically a crime. (And that distinction matters, because the threat is often the point.)