“No Kings” protests opposing the Trump administration are planned nationwide on Saturday, including in Durango.
Saturday, June 14, marks the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army, the 248th anniversary of the U.S. flag’s adoption – and President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday.
Indivisible Durango is organizing a march and rally for Saturday in downtown Durango. In its announcement, the group described the protest as part of a “mass mobilization” against “increasing authoritarian excesses and corruption of the Trump administration.”
Protests in Durango have drawn large crowds this spring, including the “Hands Off!” rally in April, attended by at least 1,000 people – the city’s largest protest since a 2018 anti-gun violence rally.
Saturday’s protest is also expected to draw a large crowd.
Protesters are scheduled to gather at 10:30 a.m. at College Drive and Main Avenue and begin marching to Buckley Park at 11 a.m., according to Indivisible Durango.
The “No Kings” protests were prompted, at least in part, by a military parade in Washington, D.C., marking the Army’s 250th anniversary – which protesters say is really a self-aggrandizing event tied to Trump’s birthday.
The Associated Press reported that the military parade will feature “hundreds of military vehicles and aircraft and thousands of soldiers” along with “60-ton M1 Abrams battle tanks and Paladin self-propelled howitzers.”
In a news release, Indivisible Durango said, “While Trump throws himself a military parade in D.C., we’ll turn satire into action with a bold grassroots street circus that reclaims the big tent for democracy.”
The protests are being organized by the 50501 Movement – 50 states, 50 protests, one movement – and are expected to occur in more than 1,800 locations, according to a news release from NoKings.org.
cburney@durangoherald.com
