Zanesville protest joins nationwide ‘No Kings’ movement

ZANESVILLE, OH- Across the country, and right here in Zanesville, people gathered today as part of a nationwide protest called “No Kings.”

Hundreds stood outside the Muskingum County Courthouse, joining more than 2,000 similar protests held nationwide on President Donald Trump’s birthday.

The peaceful demonstration is part of a growing movement rejecting authoritarianism and calling for accountability from political leaders. Demonstrators said they were concerned about recent budget cuts, job losses, immigration policies, the Trump backed parade being held in Washington, D.C. today, and what they view as the president’s defiance of the U.S. constitutional system of checks and balances.

“There are just a lot of things that people are unhappy about, budgets being cut, jobs being lost, and today there’s a 35 to 55 million dollar parade being held in D.C. on Trump’s birthday, it just seems a little tone deaf to a lot of us, and that’s why we’re here, we want people to know that not everybody supports this, and it’s good for people to see that we’re here, we have counter-protesters here today, glad to see them, we welcome them, this is democracy in action,” said Muskingum County Democrats Party Chair, Michael Nern.

The protest, led locally by the group 50501 and Muskingum County Democrats, remained peaceful throughout the day. Organizers thanked Zanesville Police for maintaining a respectful presence and ensuring a safe space for everyone involved.

“We’ve got a nice community here, I think we need to treat each other with respect and dignity and look for ways to improve our community…this is my motto, live united, because we’re not going to do very well divided, it’s already obvious,” said Nern.

As protests continue in cities and small towns alike, organizers say the movement continues.