EASTHAM — Demonstrators at the “No Kings” protest here on June 14 seemed surprised by the size and intense spirit of the crowd that lined both sides of Route 6 outside the Salt Pond Visitor Center.
“Where’s your drone?” asked Steve Burke, wanting to help a rookie reporter on his first assignment. “You could set it up over there. Then you could really get a sense of how big this all is.”
Skylar Bates, a recent graduate of Nauset Regional High School, was impressed by “the sheer volume of people who were willing to come together and show their support. I am definitely surprised by the number of people here today. That is a great feeling.”
Wellfleet Town Moderator Dan Silverman, a former fire chief, estimated the crowd at 2,500.
This was not a quiet gathering. At the south end of the crowd, a group beat drums, creating a rhythm that inspired a call-and-response chant: “Show me what democracy looks like!” and “This is what democracy looks like!” Passing motorists honked in support. “I’d say at least 80 percent of the drivers made some noise,” said Calie Wotherspoon of Wellfleet, who will be a senior at Nauset High in the fall.
Protestors said that they were aware of being part of a simultaneous national outpouring of condemnation of Trump’s government policies and practices. But the soundscape made the protest seem less about grievances and more like a celebration. “The people are speaking today, and I’m so happy to be part of it,” said Deidre Deer Sullivan, who came from Harwich for the day.
Many said they hoped the protests would have an effect on Americans who were scared to speak up and felt alone in their opposition.
“On a national level, we need to have an effect on the Republicans,” said Marian Strangfeld from Harwich. “We need them to stand up.”
Strangfeld, whose Nauset Citizens Alliance helped organize the protest, said she hoped it would help people “to take action or to just know they are not alone.”
Reasons for showing up ranged widely. “What brought me out here was my concern that democracy is under attack,” said Sullivan, adding that she also objected to “the attack on our immigrant population.”
“Science is a big one,” said Bates. “I don’t think that RFK Jr. is a good person to be in charge of our health.”
Dozens of protesters waved American flags, which were by far the most common symbol at the demonstration. Protest signs often embraced patriotic sentiments while still rejecting the current administration’s policies. “Make America America Again,” one sign read. —Odie Adelson-Grodberg
PROVINCETOWN — Michael O’Toole was scrolling through the national map of more than 2,000 “No Kings” rallies scheduled for June 14 when something struck him — Provincetown, a geographic outlier with a history of inclusion, wasn’t on it.
With less than a week to spare, O’Toole started making calls.
“Provincetown is this symbol of acceptance and love, and we take things for granted here because it’s a bit of a bubble,” he told the Independent. “But I wanted us to show our respect and support for all these other cities and the rest of the country that’s dealing with these issues.”
As the Bas Relief Park began to fill with people on Saturday morning, songsters led the crowd in a rendition of “This Little Light of Mine.”
Chants followed, including, “No hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here.”
When the clock struck noon, drag queen Lucinda Liphol, who emceed the protest, kicked off the speeches with a bit of history.
“Not only is it our fearless leader’s unfortunate birthday; not only is it the 250th anniversary of the American army,” Liphol said, “it is Provincetown’s anniversary, because on June 14, 1727, we were incorporated as a town.
“This town has been a space of freedom for many years,” she added.
“We stand proudly for our values and autonomy here,” said Provincetown Select Board member Austin Miller. “We have never bowed to a king and have no plan to do that today,” he said to applause.
The mood darkened as Harvard University Professor Timothy McCarthy took the stage and told the crowd he had just learned that Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman — a former student of McCarthy’s and the speaker of the Minnesota House for six years — had been assassinated.
“She’s no longer with us,” McCarthy said, but “we the people are still here. My institution, my school, my workplace, where Melissa and I learned together, is just one institution under attack. Provincetown predates the United States by over 150 years. So, we’ll be here through this, because we were here, and we were queer before this.”
A theatrical performance by playwright Cody Sullivan and actors Nick Wilson and Katie Pentedemos helped elevate the crowd — which by this point had swelled to about 500. Their play poked fun at complacency and drew laughter from the audience.
Perfomer Qya Cristál was set to wrap up the event, but her backing tracks cut out mid-performance. Her impromptu a cappella vocals left more than a few people with tears in their eyes.
Just as the protest seemed to be dissolving, a woman in a purple jacket asked for the microphone for an off-the-cuff speech. She said she had just come from Los Angeles, where National Guard and Marine troops have been deployed over the objections of state and local leaders.
“We can show up, we can take action — and please let people know that you are thinking of us in Los Angeles, because there are tanks in our city, there are Marines in our city, there are people with weapons in our city,” she said.
She stepped off the stage with tears on her face, and a small group embraced her, offering comfort and solidarity. —Grace E. Yoon
BOSTON — Judy Savage of Wellfleet had never been to a protest before, but last Saturday she took a deep breath and boarded a bus with roughly 30 other Outer Cape locals headed to the “No Kings” protest in Boston.
“Crowds make me a little anxious,” Savage said, as the bus pulled onto Route 6. “But the intensity and volume of things that the Trump administration has been doing is just terrifying. It’s time to take some action.”
Savage had received an email weeks before from Indivisible Outer Cape, the local chapter of a national organizing group founded after Trump’s 2016 election, asking people to travel to Boston.
“We need to go bigger to get the attention of elected officials and leaders of media, business, academia etc. and demand they stand up, speak out and resist the encroaching authoritarianism,” the email read.
Pam Poindexter, an organizer of Indivisible Outer Cape who lives in Wellfleet, said the group sent two buses with a total of 90 people to Boston.
“So much of our work is just giving agency and opportunities to people to engage,” Poindexter said. “By organizing these buses, it allows the members, people who are concerned, to have an ability to show up at a highly visible event.”
The 90 protestors joined tens of thousands more as the rally merged with the city’s annual Pride Parade.
The convergence made for a colorful and boisterous display. Rainbow-draped floats rolled down Boylston Street as marchers waved handmade signs celebrating the day’s hybrid spirit. “No Kings but Yaaas Queen” signs were everywhere, along with “Resist With Pride” and “We All Belong.”
Unlike most other “No Kings” protests nationwide, the Boston protest had few speakers and several musical performances. Gov. Maura Healey did make a brief appearance, telling the audience “Happy Pride” before promptly handing off the microphone amid interruptions from pro-Palestine protesters.
Though Poindexter said combining the protest with Pride was especially meaningful for residents of the Outer Cape, where LGBTQ identity and activism are deeply intertwined, she was still worried that the parade could overshadow the “No Kings” message.
But for Cindy Rosenbaum and Rebecca Bruyn, Truro residents who rode the bus to Boston on Saturday, the fused events only meant more visibility.
“We’re all marching together, so that’s gonna be a lot of people,” Bruyn said.
“We’ve been waiting for a movement for a long time,” Rosenbaum said. “We’re very excited about people starting to come out and express themselves.”
Lois Tash, who had taken an Indivisible Outer Cape bus to Boston for the April 5 “Hands Off” protest, said that Saturday’s demonstration felt different.
“This was a completely different experience,” Tash said on the bus ride home. “It was a celebration.” —Samuel A. Church
