Protesters Are Chaining Themselves to the Fence Outside Derek Chauvin’s Trial

Emilie Valenti arrived outside the Hennepin County Courthouse before dawn in 20-degree weather and chained herself to a barbed-wire fence.

The 55-year-old activist had just taken over the spot of another protester, who’d been chained to the fence in downtown Minneapolis throughout Tuesday night. Before that, Kaia Hirt, a local schoolteacher, had locked herself to the fence for nearly 24 hours to demand expansive police reform, like removing qualified immunity for officers who commit crimes. They’re also demanding the passage of police reform bills in the Senate. They’re protesting...