Michigan Residents Planning Vehicle Protest Over Strict Stay At Home Orders

Residents in Michigan are not happy with the strict stay at home orders put in place by Governor Gretchen Whitmer and are planning to take to the streets in protest. Instead of marching through the state capital, the protesters will remain in their cars as they drive past the statehouse in Lansing.

The vehicular protest is being organized by Meshawn Maddock, who told ABC News she feels Whitmer has gone too far with the draconian orders which ban people from traveling between two residences, force stores to rope off sections that sell "non-essential" items and place strict limits on the number of people who can be inside a store at any given time. People who violate the orders can be hit with fines up to $1,000.

"Nobody is denying that this is a crisis, a worldwide crisis, but we've also all learned to be safer. Everybody has learned a lesson in hand-washing, face touching, and social distancing. And so many businesses and hobbies, and just everyday things, have been restricted by our governor," Maddock said.

Maddock created an event on Facebook called "Operation Gridlock," and more than 4,000 people said they plan to attend with another 17,000 people expressing interest in joining the protest.

"We were hoping, in the beginning, because people were so fed up and so frustrated with our [state] administration, that we would get a few hundred cars down there, but instead we're going to have thousands," Maddock said. "Our local government can't even run our unemployment website right now. They can't solve this crisis, and they're only perpetuating it. So we just really wanted to give people a way to be heard, and right now, we have no way for our voices to be heard."

Whitmer said that she is aware of the planned protest and does not intend to stop the demonstration.

"It's OK to be frustrated, it's OK to be angry. If it makes you feel better to direct it at me, that's OK, too. I've got thick skin. And I'm always going to defend your right to free speech," Whitmer said.

Photo: Getty Images