Hundreds Attend Minnesota ‘Back the Blue’ K9 5K Walk/Run

Hundreds of people attended a “Back the Blue” K9 5K Walk/Run to support a Minnesota police department’s K9 unit, according to the event’s Facebook page.

The event, which took place in Scanlon, Minnesota, on Saturday, brought out 500 people, organizers of the event told the Pine Journal.

As the event was primarily to benefit the Duluth Police Department’s K9 unit, people and their dogs were naturally out in full for the race.

Hundreds of attendees packed the starting line with their bibs on in the event’s inaugural year.

Attendees were encouraged to wear blue to support law enforcement on race day.

The event in Minnesota was a unique take on “Back the Blue” events, which are normally held as rallies. The rallies are quite popular across the country.

In April, a Back the Blue rally in upstate New York drew people who held up signs in support of the police, former President Donald Trump, and showed up to support local businesses.

But these rallies have maintained their popularity for a while, especially after protests against the police following instances of police brutality.

In August 2020, for example, more than 200 pro-police demonstrators attended a Back the Blue rally in North Carolina.