Courthouse Cafe site of protest

PORTALES — Courthouse Cafe on Portales’ downtown square was the scene of a small, peaceful protest against public health orders on Friday afternoon.

Owner Julie Rooney said customers were ordering their meals to-go and then chose to eat inside the large seating area of her restaurant, which is also a gift shop. Public health orders prohibit indoor dining throughout New Mexico because of COVID-19.

Rooney said she was not opposed to the protest, as it was not causing a disturbance and she felt people had the right to showcase their opinions.

“It’s not my place to disperse protestors,” Rooney said. “To me, if a business feeds a family then it is an essential business.”

News of the protest spread and witnesses estimated several dozen people ultimately participated in showing support for those in the cafe. The gathering was reported to the New Mexico State Police. When an officer arrived, Rooney said he asked the protestors to disperse. Rooney said she was given a warning, and told a future incident would lead to a cease and desist order. The public health order includes a provision for fines if businesses fail to comply.

Additional officers then arrived, but Rooney said that was because the first officer had turned off his radio and failed to notify others that the situation was under control.

Wade Fraze, who coaches basketball and teaches at Portales High School, joined the protest and confirmed Rooney’s account of the afternoon, as did Bruce Nixon, owner of Nixon Construction in Portales. Other participants livestreamed the protest through Facebook. Videos showed protestors speaking with the officers, expressing support for the law enforcement officers but noting their disagreement with the public health orders and their intent of holding similar protests in the future.

Fraze and Rooney both said they were surprised at how quickly the protest was reported and broken up.

Editor Kevin Wilson contributed to this report.