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A string of protests marched across Greater Cincinnati as part of a nationwide movement opposed to President Donald Trump and his administration.
The June 14 “No Kings” protests, organized by activist group Indivisible and its partners, are described as a “nationwide day of defiance.” Nearly 2,000 communities across the nation took to the streets to oppose what organizers describe as “corrupt, authoritarian politics.”
Numerous protests took place in the afternoon locally throughout Greater Cincinnati, including:
‘I don’t understand where America’s going.’ Thousands march down Cincinnati streets
Roughly several thousand protesters marched down Clifton Avenue in Cincinnati after having gathered at the University of Cincinnati’s campus.
The university seemingly closed all five of its parking garages – CCM, Calhoun, Corry, Woodhouse and Campus – in the wake of the protest. An Enquirer reporter on scene said all lots have signs that say “Lot full.”
Nonetheless, protesters were seen with a myriad of anti-Trump posters and signs, and American flags were being raised high during the march.
Veterans like 71-year-old Joel Arnold, donning a “We the people” patriotic flag shirt, described his frustration with today’s military parade and politics in Washington.
“I don’t understand where America’s going,” said Arnold, a Navy veteran from Florence. “I didn’t serve my country so people could hate each other.”
David Mann, former U.S. representative and former mayor of Cincinnati, also attended the march. He says turning things around requires citizens coming together like they have today.
“It’s very dangerous when the Army becomes the military of the president,” said the 85-year-old Mann, who was also in the U.S. Navy and has on a ship during the Cuban Missile Crisis. “(Trump’s) trying to make it his military.”
Jeanne Stephens, 48, of Mt. Healthy has concerns with the Trump administration’s treatment of immigrants.
“Trump makes it sound like all immigrants are criminals,” Stephens said. “Immigrants built this country.”
Stephens, a former AmeriCorps volunteer, is also disappointed in the defunding of the program by this administration. She says she spent two years helping children in Baltimore and volunteer teaching in New Mexico with the program
Jennifer Woods, 75, of Bridgetown said her and her husband, a Vietnam veteran, were called out to the protest because she feels “angry, furious, disgusted and enraged to see the United States of America disparaged in such a way by a president that does not deserve our respect or his position.”
Woods also listed multiple issues that compelled her to join the protest, including citizens rights, mistreatment of immigrants, women’s reproductive rights and education.
“We don’t want a dictator. We are a government of the people, not of one person,” she said.
Bob Burke, of University Heights, and friends marched through the protest with a collection of flags — Greenland, Panama, the United States and even Harvard University.
“All the ones Trump hates,” Burke said.
‘Stop this Trumpster fire’: Over 1,000 show up to protest in conservative Mason
The protest in Mason, in the heart of conservative Warren County, started small, but by noon a long line of protesters wrapped Mason Middle School on Mason-Montgomery and Tylersville roads.
Krysti Paul, 41, said she unofficially organized the protest and they expected a crowd of around 500. By 1 p.m., her husband Joe Paul said the crowd was up to 1,500, beyond any of their expectations.
“It’s more about just feeling like you have to be silent, the Mason resident said of living in a predominantly conservative community.
“The Trump administration is trying to dismantle the Constitution,” Paul said. She added that speaking up is the only way to make that stop.
“It’s hard to see and it’s scary to see,” she said.
Demonstrators carried signs reading, “Democracy not fascism” and “Stop this Trumpster fire,” all while Marvin Gaye played on a nearby loud speaker. While demonstrators met with many on the road honking their car horns in support, a man driving a Ford Mustang did a burnout in front of the protesters and held out his middle finger. The crowd waved back.
“People need to make their opinions heard,” said 73-year-old John Duker of Cincinnati’s West Side. He said autocracy will take over if not.
Jack Halloran, 20, of Mason, held a sign that read, “Punch Nazis.”
Halloran said he takes issue with ICE arresting undocumented immigrants who haven’t committed crimes.
“It’s really just tyrannical,” he said. “This is not the way to go about it at all.”
Law enforcement has not been seen at the protest, which remained peaceful, according to an Enquirer reporter on scene.
Protests countering Trump military parade, immigration crackdowns
Falling on Flag Day and Trump’s birthday, the day of protest was intended to help counter Trump’s planned Washington, D.C. military parade. It also coincides with large-scale protests in Los Angeles, which erupted in response to Trump’s immigration policy.
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency is carrying out a directive from Trump to find immigrants living in the United States without legal status. The aggressive crackdown has fueled anger and protests in Los Angeles and across the country, which have led to hundreds of arrests amid occasional violent clashes, vandalism and looting.
Hundreds of demonstrators gathered on June 8 outside the Butler County Jail to protest the arrest of 19-year-old Honduran immigrant Emerson Colindres, who was detained by ICE agents on June 4 during a routine check-in with immigration officials at the agency’s office in Blue Ash.
USA TODAY contributed to this report.
This story was updated to add a video.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: ‘We don’t want a dictator.’ Thousands march across Cincinnati area for ‘No Kings’ protest
Reporting by David Ferrara, Quinlan Bentley, Aaron Valdez and Annie Goldman, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
