GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A series of demonstrations against the Trump administration, the "No Kings" protests will return to parks and public spaces across America this weekend.
In Grand Rapids, a No Kings Community Festival will be held at Riverside Park on Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
The two hours of protest, according to organizers, will include signs and petitions, live music, a comedian, a food drive and representation from community groups.
Indivisible Greater Grand Rapids (IGGR) and West Michigan Indivisible — grassroots groups that are members of Indivisible, a hybrid political action committee (PAC) based in Washington, D.C. — are organizing the festival.
"We love this country. We want it to succeed and we want to support democracy," said Mary Gleiter, a leader of IGGR.
"We're doing it again to remind everyone that we want a county and a future built on having no kings," added Becky Palmer, another leader of the group.
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‘No Kings’ rally in Grand Rapids draws thousands to protest Trump administration
During the first series of "No Kings" protests in June, pair of rallies at Ah-Nab-Awen Park and Rosa Parks Circle attracted thousands of people.
Gleiter says Saturday's festival will happen "rain or shine" and hopes for similar attendance.
"People want to feel they are accepted and are a treasured part of their community," she said. "Whatever we can do to build community is a good thing."
During an interview on Friday, I asked Gleiter and Palmer if they thought the country had improved in the four months that had passed since the first "No Kings" protests.
"No, we are actually in a worse position," Gleiter said. "Clothing has gone up. Shoes have gone up. Toys have gone up in price. Everything is going up in price."
"No, absolutely not," Palmer said. "I think people are really feeling the pinch. I think they're afraid, worried about what this means when people are being disappeared off the street, being held in detention without due process. I think people are really worried."
I also asked the two if they thought the protests — locally and nationally — were making a difference.
"Yes, I think that these protests are making a difference," Gleiter said. "We are hearing that from some of our elected [officials]."
"These protests — and this is a protest, a community protest — are all about educating people, bringing people together to talk about what they would like to see in this country," she said.
"I think that one of the things this regime expects is for us to be angry and to start a fight," Palmer said. "We are angry, but we're not going to fight. This is the way we are going to fight. We're going to show up and we're going to be a community, and we're going to speak with a voice that says, 'Here's the future we want built in our country.'"
In a statement to FOX 17, the Grand Rapids Police Department said it was "collaborating with the city's Office of Special Events and other city departments to make sure it is a safe event for all."
In June, the department reported no arrests and no "major issues" from the protests in Grand Rapids.
