Sandpoint ‘No Kings’ demonstration draws estimated 1,000 protesters

By Zach Hagadone
Reader Staff

Sandpoint joined more than 2,100 communities that drew an estimated 5 million people to the streets nationwide to demonstrate against President Donald Trump’s administration on June 14 for “No Kings” protests.

The June 14 No Kings protest drew more than 1,000 people in Sandpoint. Photo by Hal Gates

According to organizers on nokings.org, the demonstrations were prompted because the Trump White House has “defied our courts, deported Americans, disappeared people off the streets, attacked our civil rights and slashed our services. The corruption has gone too. far. No thrones. No crowns. No kings.”

Organized by 50501 Sandpoint and Sandpoint Indivisible, in conjunction with the national “No Kings” group, as many as 1,000 people turned out on First Avenue for the protest, waving signs, chanting and singing from Superior Street north past Pine Street.

For comparison, statewide attendance at the day’s demonstrations was estimated at more than 23,000, with Boise drawing 13,000 attendees. Closer to home, Coeur d’Alene had 2,000 protesters, Moscow had 400 and Bonners Ferry had 60. Lewiston and Clarkston, Wash. had 700 demonstrators, and the Silver Valley had 65. 

Those numbers come from organizers, and indicate that — per capita — Sandpoint had among the largest No Kings protests in the state, accounting for about 10% of the total city population.

Despite the large crowd size, and with the demonstration occurring at the same time as the Farmers’ Market, ArtWalk and CHAFE 150 bike race, there were no instances of violence and only a handful of illegal actions — all by counter-protesters, according to the most recent, verifiable reports. Meanwhile, the Bonner Community Food Bank collected donations on the lawn in front of the Bonner County courthouse.

Chants of “this is what democracy looks like” and “no KKK in the USA — no king — no ICE” came in waves, and a choir of local singers performed a selection of classic protest and union songs to the beat of a drum.

About 30 individuals turned out to oppose the demonstration, standing peacefully though openly carrying sidearms and with some sporting tactical garb. Two drivers of large trucks spewed exhaust on demonstrators, and one individual sped down First Avenue on a motorcycle, only to be swiftly pulled over by Sandpoint police.

The Reader witnessed both coal-rolling incidents and the speeding motorcycle. Sandpoint Planning and Community Development Director Jason Welker also experienced one of the coal-rolls while speaking with the Reader, with the smoke also affecting counter-protesters.

In a followup email, Welker offered praise for the Sandpoint Police Department’s posture at the event.

“The protest seemed to be handled very well by law enforcement and everything remained civil and calm,” Welker wrote. “I was not surprised to get coal-rolled but was pleasantly surprised to see how quickly SPD responded to that disrespectful and illegal behavior.”

Asked if there were any disturbances on the street, Rachel Castor told the Reader on behalf of organizers that, “We had nothing. Our peacekeepers stood just north of the ‘militia contingent’ and discouraged people there for the No Kings rally from engaging the MAGA protesters, but some people did. We had no incidents of any violence or even heated arguments.”

In addition, she wrote, “We want to give a huge shoutout to SPD and BCSO, though. They were fantastic.”

Sandpoint Mayor Jeremy Grimm told the Reader that he was “very pleased by the respectful and courteous attitude displayed during the event. It was a busy day in Sandpoint with hundreds of riders of the CHAFE 150 event and ArtWalk events.”

He also applauded local police for their approach to the protests, stating that he met with Police Chief Corey Coon prior to the event and walked through a number of scenarios, including countermeasures, approaches and tactics “to minimize and react to any potential disturbance,” he wrote.

“A kudos to Bonner County residents is deserved as well,” Grimm added. “At the end of the day, our police can deploy and respond to situations, but it is the actions of individuals and organizations that set the tone during gatherings where opposing views may exist. We all have the freedom to choose our reactions and actions. Violence and intimidation are never acceptable and represent an inherent inability to communicate with dialogue.”