There is an common exception to free speech laws that every schoolchild knows. “You can’t yell “fire” in a crowded theatre unless the place is really on fire.
That can’t be interpreted too narrowly, it applies to words other than “fire” in places other than a crowded theatre. It means you aren’t allowed to say things to a crowd of people that scare and alarm them, with a likelihood that it will cause a panic.
I think that given the totality of the circumstances, the Stop The Steal rally and the March To Save America were way too incendiary to be allowed to happen at the time and place that they did.
But I sort of made a different argument for my point instead of addressing yours, didn’t I?
It comes down to what I meant by “doing their jobs”. It wasn’t a good choice of phrasing. I wasn’t referring to executive level functioning…lawmakers drafting legislation, businessmen selecting vendors, CEO’s acquiring companies. That stuff is fair game for protest.
I was referring to “just doing their jobs”, in the “just doing my job, man” sense of the phrase , the laborer that carries things from point A to point B, the nurse that goes from room to room administering treatments based on what’s written in the chart, the administrator that puts a stamp on paperwork that meets certain technical requirements.
You might think a medication is dangerous and causes more harm than good. There are avenues to address that. You can protest outside the FDA will they review the application and make the decision. You can boycott and protest against the pharmaceutical companies that decide to manufacture and distribute the drug.
But once all that fails, don’t follow the nurse around the hospital and yell at her every time she dispenses the drug. That’s harassment and intimidation even if you don’t snatch it from her hands.
The Trump events were surrounded by disinformation to make the event seem like a legitimate protest, but it really was nothing but intimidation.