'No Kings' Protest Draws Hundreds, Stays Peaceful (Mostly)

Hundreds showed up to the protest with signs, kids and dogs - Photo By Derek Bratton

SILVERTON, Ore. — An estimated 500 protesters lined the streets of Main and Water Streets in Silverton, Oregon, on Saturday, June 14, 2025, for a No Kings protest, joining a nationwide movement against President Donald Trump’s policies in his second term.

The rally, held in the historic downtown from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., brought together local residents, activists, and families to oppose what organizers described as “authoritarian excesses.” A smaller counterprotest took place at Westfield and C streets, drawing about two dozen Trump supporters.

The No Kings event, organized by local chapters of Indivisible and the 50/50/1 Movement, featured speeches, chants, and American flags flown upside down, to indicate the United States is in distress. “Silverton may be small, but our voice matters,” said an Indivisible Silverton organizer, who declined to be named. The protest was one of over 1,800 demonstrations across the U.S., spurred by a full-page New York Times ad funded by billionaire Christy Walton urging peaceful mobilization.

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The Silverton rally coincided with a military parade in Washington, D.C., celebrating the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary, Flag Day, and Trump’s 79th birthday. National organizers, including the ACLU and Public Citizen, framed the No Kings protests as a response to the D.C. event, criticized as a “costly, un-American display of strongman politics.” In Silverton, demonstrators voiced alarm over recent ICE raids, executive overreach, and cuts to public services.

The event remained peaceful, with one minor incident. Protesters, ranging from retirees to young parents with strollers, who lined the street along Main and Water Street, chanting, “No kings, only people!” Handmade signs bore messages like “Democracy, Not Dictators” and “No Thrones, No Crowns.” Local businesses displayed supportive signs, though some residents noted minor traffic disruptions.

At Westfield and C streets, a small group of counter-protesters, estimated at about 25, gathered with pro-Trump signs and flags. Their presence, though vocal, remained non-confrontational.

Silverton’s protest reflected the broader national mood. In cities like Portland, Chicago, and San Diego, thousands rallied with similar demands. In small towns like Pentwater, Michigan, hundreds turned out, proving the movement’s reach. 

The rally’s timing amplified its message. News of unrest in Los Angeles, where National Guard troops were deployed against earlier protests, and a canceled rally in Parker, Colorado, due to permitting disputes, underscored the stakes. 

As the rally ended, protesters dispersed, but their resolve lingered. In Silverton’s historic downtown, with its quaint storefronts and tree-lined streets, the echoes of “No kings, only people!” seemed to weave into the town’s fabric.