Sedona, AZ –A crowd estimated at over One Thousand Six Hundred (1,600) marched through Sedona on Saturday, protesting actions of the Trump Administration. The second “NoKings” march in Sedona this year was one of over 2600 simultaneous events across the United States involving millions of participants.
Animated sign-waving marchers stretched more than a mile along SR 89A in West Sedona in a peaceful demonstration on a sunny Saturday morning. They waved American Flags and held homemade signs with the “No Kings” theme of anti-authoritarianism.
Verde Valley United, a coalition of Verde Valley civic engagement groups, sponsored the No Kings March to highlight public opposition to authoritarian and anti-democracy policies and acts of the Trump Administration. Speakers denounced masked agent profiling and arrests of brown-skinned people, many of whom have turned out to be citizens or long-term law-abiding residents. They objected to abusive and unlawful deployments of National Guard troops, political propaganda by federal government agencies, attacks on both medicaid funding and insurance availability for low income and disabled citizens, and targeted tax breaks for buddy-billionaires.
The march culminated in speeches delivered at Jack Jamesen Veterans Park. Speakers included Lead Organizer Toby Friedman of Indivisible Sedona, grassroots organizer Kelli Klymenko, and Rev. Anthony Johnson of Sedona Unitarian Universalist Fellowship.
“This is about more than policy differences,” said Friedman. “Trump has defied our courts, disappeared citizens, coerced universities and businesses, and cut essential services to vulnerable Americans.” She added, “Pushing out career federal prosecutors so that cronies can pursue phony prosecutions against perceived political enemies is a tactic from the reigns of kings and autocrats, not leaders of a democracy,”
Klymenko sounded a theme of unity and democracy–standing up peacefully to authoritarianism. “We march not in anger, but in unity to remind this country that freedom has no kings, and that democracy has no masters. They’ve revived the oldest playbook by branding protest as terrorism and labeling compassion as Un-American. But know, that every voice matters and every heart counts.” Klymenko, a second generation Ukrainian-American, urged the crowd to adopt the resilience and fighting spirit of Ukrainians.
Rev. Johnson sounded a positive theme, quoting from a traditional spiritual hymn that “The joy I have the world didn’t give to me and the world cannot take it away.” Rev. Johnson challenged the crowd, “Are you going to let them take our joy away?” He followed their loud chorus of “No’s” with his own response, ”Fear cannot win when we choose to live in joy!”
Local groups supporting the protest included: After the March Indivisible, Indivisible Sedona, Democrats of the Red Rocks, Sedona Women’s March, Verde Valley Democrats, Camp Verde Indivisible, Rural Organizing Initiative, Indivisible Rimrock, and Indivisible Cottonwood, Cornville and Clarkdale. This coalition is known as Verde Valley United.
A core principle behind the No Kings protests nationwide is a commitment to peaceful, nonviolent action.
Article submitted by:
VERDE VALLEY UNITED
A Collaboration of Indivisible Sedona, Indivisible Cottonwood/Cornville/Clarkdale, After The March Indivisible, Indivisible Camp Verde, Indivisible Rimrock, Democrats of the Redrocks, Rural Organizing Initiative, Verde Valley Democrats, Sedona Women’s March
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3 Comments
Good day for America! Bad day for dictators, MAGA and the country’s first convicted felon King!
President Trump is not a king. He works tirelessly and will be out of a job in three years. Two things kings don’t do.
Many of the “protesters” were there representing the right, Republican, or MAGA viewpoint. Drove through main intersection on 89A and rough estimate were a third weren’t there to represent NO KINGS viewpoint.