Sterling police chief to ramp up police presence after tension notably rises at May 3 protest

STERLING – Concerned with a change in who is leading local protests against the Trump administration, Sterling’s police chief said an increased police presence and enhanced security measures will be put in place at upcoming protests.

“Our priority is to preserve the peace, protect life and prevent the destruction of property,” Sterling Police Chief Alex Chavira said. “[The protest] didn’t raise to that level on Saturday, but it’s moving in the wrong direction.”

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Organized by Indivisible SRFD, a group marches across the First Avenue bridge into Sterling Saturday, May 3, 2025, to protest the Trump administration and show their support for workers’ rights. The crowd started at RB&W Park in Rock Falls and marched to Grandon Civic Center in Sterling. (Alex T. Paschal)

Th protest on May 3 started at 9 a.m. at RB&W District Park in Rock Falls with more than 200 participants making signs, sipping coffee and conversing. The organizers fired up attendees with chants such as, “When democracy is under attack, what do we do? ... Fight back,” before setting off with the crowd for Sterling’s Grandon Civic Center about 9:45 a.m.

But the protest took an unexpected turn when one of its leaders started shouting after cars began honking at the crowd, which was legally walking through the crosswalk at the intersection of First Avenue and Route 2.

In response, the leader shouted back at the honking drivers through a megaphone, swearing at an elderly driver who stepped out of his vehicle to confront the leader. Shaw Local was at the event and captured the profanity-laced encounter on video.

Moments before the incident, an SPD officer warned several members of the crowd to stop blocking traffic – an issue that Chavira said led to multiple complaints about the crowd’s actions.

“I wasn’t pleased with what I heard about this weekend,” Chavira said. “Whether or not these agitators are from outside of the area, the fact remains the same that those who were participating, those who were following suit, they just now made it impossible for us to give them the benefit of the doubt.”

Who’s in charge?

Although there have been several protests at the Grandon Civic Center over the past few months, this was the first one organized by the nonprofit group Indivisible Sterling/Rock Falls/Dixon. The other protests were organized by several members of the Action for a Better Tomorrow Sauk Valley political group – some of whom are associated with the Whiteside and Lee County Democrats political organizations. All took place without incident.

Chavira said the surprising number of people who showed up to the first protest quickly led to the decision to place barricades along the roads for subsequent demonstrations as a safety precaution. Plainclothes officers and marked units also have been present at every event, he said.

Chavira said that before the previous protests, he had been in contact with Whiteside County Democrat Committee Chair Fidencio Hooper-Campos, who notified him in advance of events to ensure they complied with state laws.

Chavira said that although there were no problems at any of the ABT events, he became concerned about the planned May 3 Indivisible march after he noticed the name of the event had a more aggressive tone and included foul language. The name was later changed.

“So, I called the same individual from the Whiteside County Democrats and said, ‘Hey, your tone is starting to change. What’s going on with this?’” Chavira said. “He said, ‘That’s not us, that’s another group out of the Chicago area, but we are going to march with them.’ So, we went over their plan and the rules, and I said as long as you’re not blocking traffic and you’re on the sidewalks, you have every right to do that.”

Shaw Local spoke with Hooper-Campos, who said the march was supposed to continue from the First Avenue bridge to East Fourth Street, when one of its leaders unexpectedly diverted the crowd to Wallace Street, blocking traffic and violating state regulations. He immediately called Chavira after the protest, apologizing for the incident.

“I didn’t even know what to say,” Hooper-Campos said. “When you have 200 people marching and all of a sudden everybody’s going in a different direction, you basically had to follow. I apologized profusely for that and told him I’m going to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Despite the incident, Hooper-Campos said he still is willing to work with the Indivisible group for future protests, provided they follow his directions and state regulations.

Chavira said that although the SPD upholds citizens’ right to protest, when individuals cannot do it peacefully, it becomes a problem.

“I think it says a lot for this gentleman to have been calling me the last three or four times to kind of walk through what the rules are, and he understood and didn’t have any issues,” he said. “But something changed on Saturday.”

Shaw Local reached out to the Indivisible group through its Facebook page. A representative provided the following response through Facebook Messenger: “SRFD Indivisible is committed to organizing peaceful, nonviolent protests in our community. While disruption is an inherent part of protest, we strive to ensure that any disruption remains respectful and manageable for the municipalities where we demonstrate. We work in cooperation with local law enforcement to prioritize the safety of both the public and our participants.

“We want to remind the public that pedestrians in crosswalks always have the legal right of way. This includes during protests. When protesters are crossing at intersections, even as part of a larger march, they are still protected by pedestrian laws.

”Vehicles that attempt to push through or drive into a crosswalk while people are crossing present a serious safety risk and may be in violation of traffic laws. We ask drivers to remain patient and cautious when encountering any group of people in a crosswalk, whether during a protest or any other time. As we continue to grow and learn from each event, we are committed to evolving our approach.

“To that end, we are implementing de-escalation training for all members to help ensure our actions have a positive and constructive impact on the communities we care about.”