Our last day in the US coincided with the No Kings protests and I was happy to find that there was one scheduled in Gloucester, the next town over from where we were staying. I signed up.
I spent some early mornings turning paper plates and cereal boxes into protest signs. I had conversations with the adults and kids about what the protest was about and why protest was important. I recruited Tod, Jeannie, and Tim to join me.
The protest in Gloucester was a march along a waterfront park to a stage where speeches were given, somewhat inaudibly. We arrived just as the group was starting to move. I estimate there were 500 people gathered, though from our vantage point at the end of the line it was hard to tell. As we rounded a bend, I saw people far, far ahead of us.
There was online chatter about the Proud Boys and other MAGA folks planning to cause trouble. I assumed that would happen in the big cities and that a small town protest would be spared. But that doesn’t mean there was no MAGA presence. One loud pickup truck accelerated past the park, middle finger up; another driver shouted “God Bless Trump!” as they went by. And there was a man with a video camera, filming people and asking questions. He was polite but sardonic. I decided to engage with him when he asked why we were protesting. Unfortunately, I told him something from the “Big Beautiful Bill” which turns out to be false. I have been lax in my usual fact-checking.
Our fellow protesters were kind, concerned, and peaceful. There were college students and older folks but not too many families. It was heartening to see people greeting each other with hugs and hellos. Strangers chatted with us as we walked. Supporters filmed from cars passing by and honked their approval as we waved at them.
There were lots of great signs and though I expected to see other topics like war or climate change, almost every sign I saw was clearly focussed on the anti-Trump message.
I am grateful that I was able to exercise my right to peacefully protest. The final tally of protesters nationwide varies widely (5 million to 12 million) depending on the source, but no matter how many we actually were on that day, I was one.
