More than 30 people showed up to voice their disapproval with Idaho Gov. Brad Little’s stay-home order in a protest Friday at the Nez Perce County Courthouse building in Lewiston.

At the event, speakers took turns on top of a picnic table to express their grievances with the stay-at-home order, enacted statewide by Little under an emergency declaration March 25. On Wednesday, Little extended the order through April 30.  

“Gatherings of individuals outside the home are prohibited, with certain exceptions for essential activities or essential travel or to perform work for essential businesses and government agencies or perform essential infrastructure work,” the order states.

The rally, dubbed Disobey Idaho, was organized in conjunction with three activist groups: Idaho Freedom Foundation, Idaho Second Amendment Alliance and Health Freedom Idaho.

“We will gather on Friday to remind our employees of the state that we will not stay silent while they attempt to destroy the lives of Idahoans and our economy,” the groups announced in a joint social media post. “We do not consent to our state being shut down. We do not consent to forced imprisonment.”

Wilson Boots, a Lewiston resident who organized the protest, said he was inspired to rally the local community after seeing announcement of a similar event at the Idaho State Capitol building in Boise.

The group organized protests on Friday in not only Lewiston but Boise and Sandpoint.

“My main concern is our loss of freedom,” Boots said. “Do you totally shut down an entire country and add to the national debt over this? Death is a part of life.”

Boots added he has no issue with others taking preventative measures like wearing masks and social distancing.

“We should do the things we need to be safe,” Boots said. “If you feel like you need to wear a mask, I’m not against that.”

None of the protestors followed social distancing protocols and only a few wore face masks. Those in attendance waved American flags, rang bells and cheered as passing cars honked in agreement with protestors’ signs.

Also in attendance was Nez Perce County Commissioner Doug Havens and local businessman Jim Evans.

Jim Evans is the owner of Rapid Refill, an ink and toner shop in Lewiston. Evans said he’s had some walk-in customers but not enough to make a paycheck.

“Everybody’s in a fearful mode,” Evans said. “Out of fear, the governor says to close down.”

As of April 17, Nez Perce County confirmed 22 cases of COVID-19, with eight additional probable cases. There are also 11 confirmed COVID-19 related deaths in the county.

Probable cases are people who have symptoms compatible with COVID-19 and are a close contact with a lab-confirmed case or a resident or traveler in an area with ongoing community spread, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.

Accounting for the probable cases, Nez Perce County has a 36.7% fatality rate, compared to Ada County, which has a total of 591 cases and a 1.5% fatality rate.

Lindsay Nuxoll, a certified nursing assistant, at a local retirement home and long-time Lewiston resident, said she came to give hand sanitizer to the protestors.

“It’s causing so many more issues than it’s worth,” Nuxoll said. “This is a direct correlation of people getting the slightest bit of freedom revoked for the first time in their lives.”

Nuxoll said many of the folks she takes care of at the retirement home are immunocompromised and for them, taking extreme precautions to protect their health is normal.

“Why can’t we just see the bigger picture?” Nuxoll said.

Angela Palermo can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @apalermotweets