Amid a sea of American flags and placards, demonstrators chanted slogans. The atmosphere remained jovial and hopeful throughout the two-hour event which ran from 3-5 p.m.
Despite the antagonism of an agitator in a truck bearing a “Make America Great Again” flag, demonstrators were peaceful.
“It was important for me to come out here and express my first amendment right to protest this administration, the birthday parade, and to be here with like-minded people,” said Joni Laffler, who drove in from Fairborn.
She was one of several protesters who showed up early and stayed for the duration of the event. Joined by her neighbor, Joan, Joni was proud to be there representing the values she believes in.
“Just the fact that President Trump is doing whatever the hell he wants ... he doesn’t listen to the courts, he doesn’t care about the constitution, and the people that are in his administration don’t care either,” Laffler said to describe the current administration. “They just do what he tells them to do and that is not the way our country is supposed to be run.”
Beside her, Joan proudly waved an American flag, only stopping to take photos of the rally. She was more succinct about her concerns for the future.
“I just worry about our constitution. I am just scared to death for our country and I just couldn’t stay home,” she stated.
One of the most energetic people at the rally was Jenn Casto, there to represent the local Indivisible group.
“Protesting today is so important because we have a President sitting in the White House right now that is having a military parade for himself in the streets of DC,” Casto said. “He is trying to erase African American history, he is trying to erase the LGBTQIA+ community, he is trying to essentially erase anything that does not fit his white narrative. And for the sake of my children and everyone else’s children I want to ensure that they have a good future because our democracy is on the line.”
Casto, who has a decade of experience as an individual organizer, described the day’s events as vital for the future of the country. According to her, an event in 2024 pressed home just how important demonstrating would be in the years ahead.
“Last year I took my children down to a festival downtown in September and when we left that festival, it was actually over at the heritage center on South Avenue, we were walking, and right here where I am standing today in city hall, the Blood Tribe Neo Nazi group was here and they had a sign that said ‘If you’re black go back’,” Casto said. “They had signs with Swastikas, they had assault rifles in the air. My 6-year-old daughter and my 13 year-old son at the time were both with us and I had to explain to them who those people were as best I could considering their age. So that was the catalyst for me to get more involved with local organizing with groups that were already doing the work.”
While there were plenty of protesters fearful that the U.S. was heading for a “Russian-style autocracy,” it was the past that brought retiree Danny Denson to to the streets.
“It’s kind of like being in the ’50s again. I think that’s what they’re trying to do, turn back the hand of time to worse times,” he said.
Among the most vocal demonstrators was Sharon Hessy. Wielding a placard with President Trump’s mugshot, she was an unmissable presence at City Hall.
“I am here because I believe in a free country. I don’t believe in kings and autocrats,” Hessy said. “If he gets to do what he wants to do we will all be in a heap of trouble for God knows how long.”
Asked what she feared might happen in the future, Hessy cited the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. In an appeal for common sense, she called on her fellow Americans to think about the situation logically.
“People in America can’t get jobs at McDonald’s with a felony. So how can we let someone with 34 of them run the country?” she said.
Elsewhere in Southwest Ohio, people showed up in marge numbers to be part of the “No Kings” protests. An estimated 4,000 or more took to downtown Dayton during a rally there earlier Saturday.
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