ST. PAUL — A few dozen “Black Lives Matter” demonstrators have rallied outside Gov. Mark Dayton’s home.

The protesters wanted an apology from Dayton, but his spokesman said the governor had off-site meetings scheduled in the afternoon and would not be home when the protesters arrived.

Dayton last week called the group’s plans to protest outside the Minnesota State Fair “inappropriate.”  A crowd estimated by police of up to 350 marched outside the fair on Saturday, but no injuries or arrests were reported.

About 30 people gathered outside the Governor’s Residence on St. Paul’s Summit Avenue on Tuesday evening. The group marched through the streets before returning to the mansion.

Protesters chanted on the way back to the residence: “Shame on Governor Dayton, black lives are sacred.”

According to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Dayton’s press secretary said the governor thought the group’s chant of “Pigs in a blanket, fry ‘em like bacon,” during a march at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds “was a terrible thing to say.”

The comment came after state Rep. Tony Cornish, R-Vernon Center, called on the governor to not meet with the group unless it apologizes for the chant.

Cornish, who was a police officer for 33 years, said he was disgusted by the chant during the Saturday march, according to the Pioneer Press. The St. Paul Police Federation and the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association have also criticized the message.

The newspaper said Cornish has been concerned about violence against officers recently.

“This type of chanting, in a roundabout way, seems to encourage that,” he said in the newspaper.