Don Lemon delivered a full-throated defense of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution at the tenth annual Blue Jacket Fashion Show following his arrest related to an anti-ICE protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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The 59-year-old former CNN anchor was given the floor at the charity event, at which he has walked the runway in recent years, and his speech was captured in exclusive video shot by the Daily Mail.
'I'm here just because this is really important, and I believe in freedom of expression,' Lemon said to a burst of cheers from the crowd. 'I believe in the First Amendment, freedom of the press, all of those things.'
'I think it's important for you guys to support that, and especially to support — in this day and age — independent journalism in the media,' Lemon continued.
Lemon's defiant speech comes after he was released without bail at the conclusion of a court appearance in Los Angeles last week over federal charges for conspiracy and interfering with the First Amendment rights of worshipers that he's facing related to his coverage of anti-ICE protests at a church in Minneapolis in January.
He explained in his speech that he was planning to skip the Blue Jacket Fashion Show this year — without explicitly connecting the decision to his arrest.
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Don Lemon delivered a full-throated defense of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution at the tenth annual Blue Jacket Fashion Show in NYC on Wednesday, following his arrest related to an anti-ICE protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, last month
Exclusive video shot by the Daily Mail showed the anchor, 59, giving a speech at the charity fashion show, which he has walked for years. The Blue Jacket Fashion Show benefits the nonprofit ZERO Prostate Cancer
'I'm here just because this is really important, and I believe in freedom of expression,' Lemon said to a burst of cheers from the crowd. 'I believe in the First Amendment, freedom of the press, all of those things.'
However, he decided it was too important to miss out on after he got a text message from Bill Nye (of Bill Nye the Science Guy fame) urging him to make an appearance at the show, which was founded by fashion designer Frederick Anderson to benefit the nonprofit ZERO Prostate Cancer.
'So Bill Nye, thank you for being the thing that helped me to come here,' Lemon said. 'And I want to thank you for what you do and for bringing awareness to prostate cancer.'
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Standing behind Lemon and out of the spotlight was the show's founder, Frederick Anderson.
At one point, Lemon looked back on a painful memory, the 2018 death of his sister, L'Tanya "Leisa" Lemon Grimes.
Grimes died in an accident at 58 after tripping and falling into a pond in Louisiana.
Lemon recalled that it was only the second or third year that he had walked in the Blue Jacket Fashion Show, but he was so determined to fulfill his commitment to Anderson and the charity event that he flew to the show from Louisiana, before immediately going back to be with his grieving family.
'He did. He flew back from me,' Anderson testified.
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'Then I flew back to Louisiana to take care of things with my family, but I just flew in and flew back out,' Lemon continued.
'I think it's important for you guys to support that, and especially to support — in this day and age — independent journalism in the media,' Lemon continued
To illustrate his dedication to the charity fashion show, he recalled how, after the 2018 drowning death of his sister, he flew from Louisiana to New York just to walk in the show, then immediately flew back to be with his grieving family members
Lemon said he planned to skip the show after his arrest on federal charges, but Bill Nye the Science Guy sent a text message urging him to still support the charity, though Lemon decided to skip the runway this year
'But this is really important to me because I've had friends who are affected by [prostate cancer],' the news anchor said. 'I've had loved ones who succumbed to it, and it can be a silent killer. But it doesn't have to be.
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'So this is something that's really near and dear to my heart,' Lemon added.
His speech at the Blue Jacket Fashion Show follows his buzzy appearance at the 68th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday, just days after his controversial arrest.
Lemon was joined at the Grammys by his husband, Tim Malone, 41.
The night before, he was honored with a standing ovation from Hollywood and music industry elites at Clive Davis's iconic pre-Grammys gala in Beverly Hills.
Lemon was arrested on January 29 after he was involved in an anti-ICE protest that stormed a church in Minnesota earlier on January 18.
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The target of the protest was Pastor David Easterwood, and demonstrators said they weren't protesting his faith, but the fact that he reportedly also works as a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent.
Lemon has defended himself and said he was only at the protest to cover it as a journalist. Georgia Fort, an independent journalist, was similarly hit with federal charges, but she has also said she was at the protest to report on it.
Lemon, who attended the Grammy Awards (pictured) on Sunday, was arrested on Thursday in Beverly Hills. He said around a dozen federal agents arrested him, despite his offer to turn himself in, which he said went unanswered; pictured February 1 in LA
Lemon was arrested after he was involved in an anti-ICE protest that stormed a church in Minnesota on January 18; pictured Sunday at the Grammys with husband Tim Malone
On Friday, a judge in Los Angeles allowed for Lemon's release without bail after his court appearance, and his lawyer told the judge that he would be pleading not guilty, though Lemon didn't enter a formal plea during the 20-minute hearing.
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After federal prosecutors urged the judge to impose a $100,000 bail on Lemon, his attorney stated that the newsman is 'committed to fighting this case' and 'not going anywhere.'
Lemon had been in custody overnight at the point after he was arrest on Thursday in Beverly Hills.
Prosecutors also asked the judge to force Lemon to surrender his passport and to only travel within New York — where he lives — and Minnesota, the site of his alleged crimes.
The judge ultimately agreed with Lemon's attorney and allowed him to retain his passport and go free on his own recognizance without bail.
She also gave Lemon permission to go on a planned sailing trip in France in June, as long as it doesn't interfere with his court hearings in Minnesota.
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His next hearing is scheduled for February 9.
After his arrest, the Trump administration mocked him in a post on an official social media account.
'When life gives you lemons...' it captioned an image of Lemon inside the Cities Church in St. Paul.
Federal prosecutors charged Lemon with conspiracy and interfering with the First Amendment rights of worshipers, but he says he was only at the protest in his capacity as a journalist
After his arrest, the Trump administration posted a mocking photo of Lemon to its official social media account on X (formerly Twitter)
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A source told the Daily Mail that Lemon was seen being handcuffed on Thursday while FBI and Homeland Security agents flanked him.
They added that he 'didn't look overly happy' at the show of force, and in an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Monday, Lemon claimed that he had offered to turn himself in, but federal authorities never responded.
He was then arrested publicly by around a dozen law enforcement officers, which he said was a tactic to 'embarrass' him.
'They want to embarrass you,' he told Kimmel. 'They want to intimidate you. They want to instill fear.'
Lemon began his journalism career as a weekend news anchor at a local station in Birmingham, Alabama, before working at outlets in Pennsylvania and Missouri.
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Lemon's most high-profile stint as a journalist was at CNN beginning in 2006. He was promoted to anchor of CNN Tonight in 2014, a position he held until the network fired him in 2023.