NO KINGS RALLY IN ST GEORGE JUNE 17th

Over 1,000 protesters gathered at Vernon Worthen Park in St. George on Saturday to voice their issues regarding President Donald Trump and his administration as a part of the “No Kings” rallies being coordinated across the United States.

The protesters endured over 100-degree weather during the rally which began at 2 p.m. and lasted until 4 p.m. The park was flooded with people representing different races and genders, all waving signs of various designs to express their concerns over immigration policy, tariffs, and due process, among other topics.

Officials with the Washington County Democratic Party of Utah managed to coordinate the event and prepared speakers to pass along the message of, “This is what democracy looks like.”

The phrase was shouted throughout the park like an echo, with many of the protesters exclaiming the phrase along the east side of Vernon Worthen Park by 400 East.

Cars passing the park honked their horns, both in support and opposition, with a police presence keeping the roadway under control.

Jorge Luis Pineda, the secretary and spokesperson for the Washington County Democratic Party of Utah, said Trump’s policy needs to change.

Pineda said, “The current administration is terrorizing the Constitution, using and weaponizing its ability to go after innocent people.”

Pineda alleged innocent U.S. citizens are being arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents across the country without a legal warrant. Many of the protesters carried signs showing their support for immigrants, as well as their dislike for ICE agents.

“ICE isn’t following the law, and yet they’re enforcing this unjust law upon us,” Pineda said. “That’s what these people are asking for, and that’s what St. George is fighting against. Unjust laws do not need to be obeyed.”

Pineda said political parties need to come together to reform the system. This includes immigration policy, and the use of militarized enforcement.

Speaking of the other side, counter-protesters were also in attendance, though not as numerous as the main crowd. Many of the counter-protesters declined to comment, but those who did speak shouted phrases like, “Back the Blue.”

With such a large number of people at Vernon Worthen Park, officers from the St. George Police Department remained on patrol throughout the event.

St. George News saw one man carrying what appeared to be a rifle was in attendance, but he was escorted off the premises by officers with no resistance. Following the encounter, many of the people attending the protest cheered and thanked the officers for their help.

Witnesses at the protest said the man appeared to be peaceful, but the presence of a firearm in the open caused some discomfort.

When handling this type of protest, St. George Police Officer Tiffany Mitchell said they take these events seriously, and event coordinators worked with the police to ensure the safety of everyone in attendance.

“This is our right as Americans to be able to speak our thoughts and our minds,” said Mitchell. “We just encourage everyone to be kind. We don’t want any violence or anything that’s going to cause an uprising. If you see it, and you want to be a part of it, obviously that’s your right.”

Mitchell asked the public to be civil and obey the law so as to not violate other people’s rights to free speech.

Cedar City

ADVERTISING

Meanwhile in a similar rally in Cedar City earlier in the day, at least 250 people lined the street corners at 200 North and Main Street to wave signs and flags as traffic went by.

Seen among the many handmade signs were those bearing slogans such as “Rejecting Kings Since 1776,” “Veterans for Democracy,” and “The Only Monarchs We Need are Butterflies. No Kings!”

Local mom Riley Cooper said she decided to spearhead Cedar City’s event just a couple days ago, after not seeing it listed as a protest location online.

“I saw that there wasn’t a protest here in Cedar, and I have small kids,” Cooper told Cedar City News. “I wanted to make sure that I still could have a chance to protest, because I wasn't going to be able to go to St. George, and so I wanted to make sure other people had that chance, too.”

Added Cooper: “I am not a huge fan of what’s going on right now. Honestly, there’s a lot of things that Trump’s doing that I don’t think are constitutional. Our Founding Fathers fought so hard to make sure we didn’t have a king, and so it feels disgraceful that we have anything like what Trump is doing to celebrate his birthday with this huge event.”

Also in attendance was Susan Merrill of Cedar City, the newly elected state vice chair of the Utah Democratic Party.

“To see this many people just out early on a Saturday morning, and I think this protest was only organized about two days ago, is really exciting,” Merrill said.

Merrill commented on the demographic diversity of the crowd, which included many people she didn’t already know.

“We have some veterans here and we’ve got some people who are more on the pacifist side,” she said.

“This is what democracy looks like,” she added. “It’s people from all different walks of life, all across the political spectrum, getting together peacefully to share what’s important to them.”

Merrill’s husband Steve Merrill, who ran for the Utah House District 71 seat against Rep. Rex Shipp last year, pointed to the symbolism of the protests taking place on the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army.

“Today is the 250th birthday of the Army, which was formed as the Continental Army to stand up to the rule of King George and the tyranny from England at the time,” Steve Merrill said. “And we’re right back in the same spot now of having to stand up to a tyrannical ruler who’s trying to throw out laws so that he can impose his own will. It’s very symbolic.”

Throughout the two-hour protest, many passing drivers were seen and heard honking and waving as they went by, often displaying a thumbs up. A few motorists sounded less friendly as they revved their engines loudly, with some holding up a different finger to indicate their opposition.

Throughout much of the rally, a group of three counterprotestors stood across the street, one holding a “Thin Blue Line” flag and another holding a “Trump 2024" flag. Shortly after the protest ended around 11 a.m., Cooper was seen shaking hands with each of the counterprotestors and thanking them for coming, as she walked back to her car.

Throughout the rally, three Cedar City Police officers observed the proceedings from farther back, inside the park. The officers said the gathering was uneventful from a law enforcement standpoint and that there weren’t any issues that required their attention.

Cedar City News reporter Jeff Richards contributed to this story.