San Angelo’s “No Kings” Protest a Peaceful Event

EYE ON SAN ANGLEO

San Angelo Indivisible’s “No Kings” protest proved an amicable demonstration on Saturday — like pretty much all of the protests in Texas — which surely came as a relief to the governor, who was anticipating widespread mayhem.

For several hours, drivers heading up and down Beauregard Avenue near the river leaned on their horns in solidarity, which was met with whistles, howls, and cheers from the crowd.

On the line, people of every age and ability level showed their protest signs, many of which very directly expressed their extreme displeasure with the current administration.

One daring “Latino for Trump” — with a sign and T-shirt letting folks know why he was here — stood shoulder-to-shoulder with protesters for quite a while.

Although it wasn’t exactly a cool day, the weather wasn’t too hot, and the natural shade in the corner of Civic League Park provided a nice rest area for anyone who needed to cool off.

Several animal companions found the protest to be quite an adventure, including a pair of border collies who made dozens of new best friends during the event.

Protesters did face a particularly-persistent gadfly, who was making his way up-and-down the line, doing his best to provoke some kind of confrontation. Attendees were wise enough ignore him for the most part.

And a small squad of rolling Trump tribute trucks passed by every-so-often, with one alpha-example setting-up shop directly across the street, providing a photo opportunity for more conservative news outlets to lead with.

The San Angelo protest lasted well into the afternoon, and according to reports, many of the protests in other cites lasted into the night.

Shocking News Starts the Day

Hours before most protests were scheduled to begin, two Democratic Minnesota legislators — and their spouses — were shot in their respective homes Saturday by a man authorities say was posing as a member of law enforcement.

One of those legislators, Melissa Hortman, and her husband, Mark, were killed. Hortman had extensive experience in state government, and served as speaker of the state house.

Meanwhile FOX News and similar outlets focused their coverage on the Trump administration’s military parade in Washington, D.C., to mark the president’s birthday, and the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary.

The nationwide protests were organized as a condemnation Trumps’ policies, including unconstitutionally-aggressive immigration enforcement, and other authoritarian actions.

A giant crowd assembled at the Capitol in Austin, while protests in the largest cities numbered in the thousands.

San Angelo’s protest probably had about 500 — just not all at the same time — with a steady stream of folks arriving throughout the event, and other leaving after an hour or so. Probably 300 were in attendance most of the time.

Cars lined both sides of Park Street and West Harris Avenue, and many people had to hike some distance from their vehicle, but nobody was complaining about that.

Many of the protesters were venerable local seniors, many of whom were quite forthcoming about their feelings, including one lady in her 90s who’s quote, while excellent, can’t be included here.

No official problems were reported in conjunction with the event.

Other Lone Star Protests

Protesters all over Texas waved flags and carried signs in protest, according to the Texas Tribune.

In McAllen, people lined up near the federal courthouse waving American flags and holding signs criticizing Trump and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

In Odessa, more than 150 people gathered on the northeast side of the booming oil field city. Families, veterans and oil field workers lined up in front of a main roadway on Saturday, facing a heavily trafficked part of town.

Across Texas, “No Kings” protests were planned primarily by progressive groups 50501, Women’s March and Indivisible, along with dozens of smaller grassroots organizations and volunteers.

This blitz of demonstrations throughout Texas and country are intentional, said 50501 San Antonio representative Alex Svehla, and highlight the movement’s core message of “executive overreach.”

Read more about it at the Texas Tribune.

— Berenice Garcia, Carlos Nogueras Ramos, Ayden Runnels and Uriel J. García with the Texas Tribune all contributed to this report.