Thousands attend Salt Lake City’s ‘No Kings’ protest

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — The “No Kings” protest brought thousands together in Salt Lake City on Saturday as demonstrations against President Donald Trump took place across the country.

People gathered across the country Saturday in the second round of No Kings protests since Trump’s return to office.

Many demonstrators wore inflatable costumes, particularly frogs, which have become a sign of resistance in Portland, Oregon. Trump was reportedly at his Mar-a-Lago home amid the nationwide protests and government shutdown.

“They say they’re referring to me as a king. I’m not a king,” Trump said in a Fox News interview that aired early Friday.

A Trump campaign social media account mocked the protests by posting a computer-generated video of the president clothed like a monarch, wearing a crown and waving from a balcony.

In Salt Lake City, ABC4 spoke with some of those in attendance of the rally at the Utah State Capitol.

“Our children deserve to grow up in a country that is a thriving democracy,” said John Arthur, voted 2021 Utah Teacher of the Year. “The only way we deliver on the promise of liberty and justice for all, like our kids recite every single morning, is to show up as adults and guarantee and ensure that’s what they get.”

“The level of injustice that we are seeing is historic, and good people, the everyday people of Utah, won’t stand for it,” Arthur added. “I’m going to reiterate that we’re better than this, and our children deserve better than this.”

ABC4 also spoke with Sarah Buck of Salt Lake Indivisible — a locally-led, grassroots group of Utahns helping to organize the protest.

“I think it’s really clear to many Americans that what this administration is doing is in violation of our Constitution,” Buck said. “There are many laws being broken. There is corruption at a level we’ve never seen.”

“And I think the other thing I hope people wake up and realize is they have worked very hard to get us to fight amongst ourselves,” she added. “To get the right and the left to fight each other while they stuff their pockets with our taxpayer dollars. And I think we all need to look up and watch the billionaires taking over this country and quit fighting with each other and take our country back.”

Buck went on to mention that peacefulness was at the core of Saturday’s protest, emphasizing that everything they’re doing is grounded in peace.

Saturday’s demonstration in Salt Lake City did not include a march, as organizers looked to provide safety measures for the event in light of the deadly shooting in June. Afa Ah Loo was fatally shot at the June 14 ‘No Kings’ protest at Pioneer Park. In response, and in order to ensure the safety of the community, the event demonstration was simply held as a rally at the Utah State Capitol.

Jeanetta Williams, president of the NAACP Salt Lake Branch, was also in attendance on Saturday. She said she was there to support the non-violent protest and was surprised by the large number of people at the Capitol.