Peaceful crowd gathers for 'No Kings' rally in Ephrata

EPHRATA — About 80 people gathered in Ephrata yesterday afternoon for a "No Kings" rally, showing solidarity with others nationwide in protesting the actions and policies of President Donald Trump and his administration.

Dave Hammond, who has been involved in organizing two prior No Kings rallies locally, acknowledged the participants are a minority in Grant County, where Trump has been favored by upward of 65% of voters in the past three presidential elections.

“But we’re a bigger group of people than some folks may realize and we wanted to make a statement,” he said. “Most people (who oppose Trump’s actions) are afraid to criticize the president, but they are not alone.”

“This is a great way of connecting,” said Hammond.

There was a sense of genial kinmanship among those who stood and sat on sidewalks along Nat Washington Way near the roundabout intersection at Highway 282 —  a frequently traveled route for shoppers driving to the nearby Walmart and Dollar Tree stores.

During their peaceful hour-long presence, the rally participants — many of them older adults — were ignored by some passing motorists. But other drivers greeted them with honks, waves, and thumbs-up signs. No counter-protesters appeared to be on hand. One man drove by and yelled “white power” out the window. Another man in a full-sized diesel pickup accelerated quickly past in what seemed like an effort to “coal-roll” the crowd with exhaust fumes.

The White House has been dismissive of the nationwide protests, saying most citizens support the president, his policies and administration. Spokesperson Abigail Jackson previously told Newsweek, “The only people who care about these Trump derangement therapy sessions are the reporters who are paid to cover them."

The administration has also claimed the demonstrations are supported by “leftist funding networks.”

Locally, the protesters’ signs reflected many of the hot-button issues currently resonating across the country: the U.S. war with Iran, federal immigration enforcement and the sometimes violent conflicts between masked I.C.E. agents and American citizens, consumer concerns over inflation and tariffs, the government’s disjointed release of files on sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, Trump’s talk of suspending elections and seeking an unconstitutional third term in office, and more.

Todd Miller, 66, who splits time between West Seattle and rural Marlin in Grant County, said he went to a No Kings rally in Moses Lake earlier on Saturday before coming to Ephrata. The scene was similar there, he said.

“Some people didn’t look at us. We got a lot of thumbs-up. And down. Honking. Some flipped us off. A little bit of everything,” said Miller, who explained he has attended prior rallies in western Washington and felt a sense of camaraderie being among others voicing their collective opposition to Trump’s polarizing second term.

His comments were echoed by 87-year-old Darlene Meyer of Ephrata, who said she attended Saturday’s event because “I wanted to express myself with like-minded people in the ‘red zone.’”

Of Trump, she said, “He has no idea of what the heck he’s doing … It’s terrifying.”