Jake Lang, a controversial right-wing activist, was beaten and stabbed by a leftist mob in Minneapolis on Saturday. Several other right-wing activists, as well as random citizens, were also attacked amid escalating political violence in the city.
Lang, 29, is a former January 6 defendant who spent nearly four years in custody before being pardoned by President Donald Trump last July. Since being released, Lang has staged a number of provocative protests, typically against the growth of Islam in the United States.
This past November, he traveled to Dearborn, Michigan — which boasts one of the nation’s largest Muslim communities — to burn a Quran publicly. He staged a similar display in Texas a month later.
On Saturday, he traveled to Minneapolis for a similar anti-Islam display. He arrived with roughly 10 supporters, shouting slogans like “Send the Somalis back,” “We stand with ICE,” ahead of a planned rally outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building and Minneapolis City Hall.
Violence erupted less than an hour into the event, as a much larger crowd of leftist counterprotestors overwhelmed Lang’s group. The mob threw water balloons, snowballs, and other objects, while some charged at Lang and his supporters, footage from the scene shows.
The chaos peaked when Lang was pulled into the crowd, punched, and dragged by his legs, forcing him to flee to a nearby hotel and later escape in a car while being chased. Footage shows Lang bleeding from the crown of his head, while at least one member of the mob stabbed him in the chest.
He was wearing a chest plate at the time, which saved him from potentially fatal injuries. The chest plate was later stolen by the mob and paraded around as a trophy on social media.
WATCH: Conservative Activist Jake Lang was attacked at Minneapolis City Hall today.
A violent mob was allowed to drag him through the streets and he was reportedly also stabbed.
Where was law enforcement?
Time for the Insurrection Act.
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) January 18, 2026
In a social media post following the event, Lang shared that a gash in his head required staples. On-the-ground journalist Cam Higby reported that the injury was likely caused by a strike from a wooden flag pole. “He was hit with ice blocks, water balloons, paint balls and other weapons,” Higby reported.
Additional members of Lang’s group were also assaulted and left the scene with visible injuries.
🚨 Sheriffs deputies just pulled up and rescued a man being attacked by a violent mob.
According to the mob the man was hit “HARD” in the head.
This is the first time I’ve seen police help someone being attacked in Minneapolis. pic.twitter.com/KnOgpF4mVS
— Cam Higby 🇺🇸 (@camhigby) January 17, 2026
The incident occurred during a particularly violent day in Minneapolis.
Footage from on-the-ground reporter Julio Rosas captured a mob surrounding a man who was wearing an American flag sweatshirt. Members of the mob then proceeded to assault him while telling him to take off his sweatshirt.
In a separate incident, a mob of masked agitators surrounded a man wearing a camo jacket and proceeded to assault him. After a few seconds, a member of the mob yelled “he’s one of us” and proceeded to let him up.
Man in Minneapolis being confronted and labeled a “Nazi” over alleged support for ICE before being assaulted and knocked out. Moments later, someone in the crowd shouts “he’s one of us,” appearing to realize they attacked one of their own.
— Clown World ™ 🤡 (@ClownWorld) January 18, 2026
The escalating violence comes as President Donald Trump has hinted at using the Insurrection Act to quell unrest in Minneapolis. “If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” the president posted on Truth Social this past Thursday.
Deploying the Insurrection Act would allow Trump to deploy active-duty U.S. military troops or federalize the National Guard domestically to suppress an insurrection or civil disorder. The president must typically issue a proclamation ordering “insurgents” to disperse before acting, though he can do so unilaterally in certain cases, or without state consent, if federal law execution is obstructed.
The 1807 law has been deployed 30 times in U.S. history, with the most recent example coming during the Los Angeles Riots in 1992.
