1000’s of individuals crammed the Ben Franklin Parkway Saturday in a “day of defiance” towards President Donald Trump. Whereas some attendees to the “No Kings” protest have been native, some got here very far – like Susan Brown.
Brown drove over 30 hours from Ogilvie, Minn., to attend the protest in Philadelphia. She defined occasions like this are essential to carry consciousness to the hurt of Trump’s actions.
“He claims he stated that all of us hate America, that every one of us who’re right here hate America,” she stated. “We love America. He’s the one who hates it. He’s attempting to destroy it.”
Brown stated she is just not onboard with most of the methods Trump is working the federal government. She stated one among her largest points is the assaults on ladies’s rights.
“I’m very involved we’re turning right into a Handmaid’s Story, attempting to manage ladies’s our bodies,” she stated.
Discontent
Brown was not the one protest attendee involved about these points. Ken Lowenstein attended the protest from Newton, N.J. He stated that, as a father, he worries for the way forward for his daughters with the present administration.
“Girls’s rights are being destroyed, and that’s scary, as somebody who has daughters and has associates,” he stated. “It boggles my thoughts that any girl helps him.”
He defined that though he doesn’t take into account himself political, he feels the necessity to converse up towards this administration and for a dramatic change in path.
“I don’t understand how this occurred,” he stated, “and I don’t know why folks stay silent.”
Christie Osborne attended the protest together with her youthful daughter and husband. She stated she feels attending the protest is a solution to set an excellent instance for her daughter.
“I believe it’s essential for our youngsters to know that they’ve the fitting to talk up for their very own well being, their training and the power to guard all people on this nation, together with
immigrants.”
There have been additionally issues for Trump’s DOGE cuts and budgeting selections, stated Joellen Nicholson, of Phoenixville.
“They’re making these cuts which are slicing actually essential packages,” she stated. “Sure, there’s all the time inefficiency. However we pay taxes to assist people who find themselves in want, whether or not or not it’s Medicaid, SNAP, or infrastructure, and we have to pay our fair proportion of taxes.”
Nicholson emphasised additionally it is essential for legislators to take a stand and converse out towards Trump to ensure that actual change to occur.
Scorching button points
Grace Conway lives in Fishtown. She stated there are a “lot” of points that drew her to the protest.
“Immigration is clearly an enormous turning level proper now,” she stated. “Now we have Gaza, just like the atrocities occurring over there. Now we have simply taxes, now we have training, now we have healthcare, now we have something that impacts everybody. Yeah, it’s so much.”
Trump’s current actions to deport immigrants have drawn lots of worry from surrounding communities. Conway stated there’s lots of misinformation that comes with these points, and that talking up about these items is essential.
“There’s lots of causes to remain at dwelling, I assume, from a worry perspective, and it’s all about simply getting on the market and never letting that weigh you down and exhibiting what’s actually occurring.”
Jaimie Karnick, of Glenside, stated she is just not proud of how Trump is utilizing army assets.
“[The administration] is utilizing army forces in the way in which they’re not designed,” she stated. “I’ve a father who fought in Vietnam, and I’ve numerous beliefs about what the army stands for and standing for the Structure versus an individual. So I really feel very strongly about being right here at this time.”
President Trump not too long ago deployed California Nationwide Guard troops and U.S. Marines in Los Angeles to cease protests towards his administration’s immigration insurance policies. These orders are at present being contested in courtroom.
Brown, the customer from Minnesota, stated she thought the army deployments have been pointless and can solely create additional division.
“In LA, I believe that many of the violence might be accomplished by Trump supporters as a result of they wish to create this chaos, a civil warfare, actually,” she stated.
Brown stated she can also be towards Trump’s financial selections, together with tariffs.
“The tariffs are only a silly thought,” she stated. “He nonetheless thinks he can persuade folks that different international locations pay for these. They usually don’t.”
The protest started with chants and plenty of conversations earlier than individuals walked from LOVE Park to the Philadelphia Museum of Artwork. On the artwork museum, audio system and a band greeted these marching.
Whereas many protestors stated they have been proud of the turnout, in addition they shared they continue to be involved for the longer term.
“I’m not a really political individual, however there’s proper and there’s incorrect, and there’s an excessive amount of incorrect occurring proper now, and it’s scary,” he stated.
The march was the product of many organizations and is a response to President Trump’s choice to carry a army parade on Flag Day, which additionally occurs to be his 79th birthday. The march right here is one among as many as 2,000 nationwide, although there shall be none in D.C.
“After we introduced the No Kings Day for this Saturday, June 14th, we stated from the get-go, that is going to occur all over the place however downtown D.C.,” Ezra Levin, a co-executive director of Indivisible, advised WHYY Information’ Carmen Russell Sluchansky. “He can have downtown D.C. for his little parade.”
Test in with Billy Penn all through the day as we are going to share a photograph gallery of the very best protest indicators, and hyperlink to protection of the audio system, together with Poor Folks’s Marketing campaign co-chair the Rev. William Barber and others. Our colleagues at WHYY can even be masking Philadelphia’s celebration of the U.S. army’s 250th anniversary with family-friendly occasions on Independence Mall.
