Former CNN anchor Don Lemon ignited fresh outrage after telling listeners on a recent podcast that “Black people, Brown people of all stripes … go out … and get a gun” so they’ll be ready to “knock some sense” into people if ICE agents come knocking.
The remark — delivered on The Left Hook — was framed by Lemon as a defense of the Second Amendment, but to many it sounded like an explicit call to prepare for violence against federal agents.
Lemon tells non-whites to get armed to fight ICE: "Get a gun for when they go knockin on your door" CC: @FBI pic.twitter.com/7wvJPJ7Bsb
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) October 16, 2025
The backlash was immediate and fierce. Conservative outlets accused Lemon of encouraging vigilantism and putting law-abiding officers at risk; others warned that urging civilians to arm themselves against federal agents crosses an ethical line and could lead to tragic outcomes.
Legal experts point out that while the Second Amendment protects lawful gun ownership, urging people to meet law-enforcement actions with prepared force raises serious criminal-law and public-safety concerns.
Lemon tried to walk back his comments by saying he was “not condoning or promoting violence,” yet the way he urged people to “get a license to carry legally” and to be prepared when agents show up left critics saying his words amount to encouragement of civil disobedience — and, potentially, violent resistance.
For an audience already convinced Lemon traffics in provocation, that distinction will do little to calm fears that he’s actively stoking confrontation.