‘No Kings’ rally draws estimated crowd of 500 around courthouse square in Oregon

OREGON — For the fourth time in three months, hundreds of people took part in a rally in Ogle County to protest the actions and policies by President Donald Trump.

Approximately 500 people lined two sidewalks around the historic Ogle County Courthouse for 2 hours on Saturday, June 14, carrying signs critical of Trump and his administration.

The Ogle County rally was one of several thousand “No Kings” rallies held across the nation on the same day that Trump hosted a large military parade in Washington D.C. in commemoration of the U.S. Army’s anniversary and his 79th birthday.

Saturday’s event was organized by Indivisible of Ogle County, the local chapter of the Indivisible Project network, a grassroots organization founded in 2016. That group also organized rallies in April and May.

“It was a good turn out,” said Jan Buttron of Chana, one of the event’s organizers. “It was peaceful. We told the city officials that we were going to keep it peaceful and we did.”

Previous rallies in Oregon drew 400, 250 and 200 people.

The June 14 rallies followed violent protests in California as Immigrant and Customs Enforcement agents entered businesses around Los Angeles to apprehend individuals they say were in the country illegally. A decision by President Trump to activate the National Guard without approval by state officials to help quell those protests did not go unnoticed by some local rally attendees.

Buttron said those actions – and the president’s ongoing executive orders – are the reasons more people are coming out to protest.

“The main message is about protecting our constitution and our republic,” said Buttron. “We are supposed to have equal branches in our government. He [Trump] is trying to consolidate all the powers to himself.”

Homemade signs criticized Trump’s tariffs, immigration policies, executive orders, and ICE raids.

Some of the signs read “When Cruelty Become Normal Compassion Looks Radical”; “Love Thy Neighbor - No Exceptions”; “Preserve the Constitution. No Kings”; “Due Process for Everyone}”; “Trump Has ‘Tarrified’ Our Farmers”; “Get Real...No King”; “Resist Like Its 1938 Germany. Save Democracy”; “No Kings. No Dictators. No Oligarchs. No Police State”; and ”Wake Up This is Facism”.

The due process clause of the Fifth and 14th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution was written to prevent state governments from depriving anyone of “life, liberty or property” without the due process of law, meaning certain procedures must be followed before officials can take actions that would affect those fundamental rights.

The Trump administration’s recent deportation of individuals, some to prisons in El Salvador, without allowing due process in the courts has sparked outcry from many Trump opponents.

Buttron said the signs reflect the concern and outrage many have over Trump’s recent actions that she said threaten “representative democracy” from the “dismantling of government services and programs and executive overreach”.

This was one of the signs displayed at the "No Kings" rally held in Oregon on Saturday, June 14, 2025. Close to 500 people took part in the 2-hour event to protest actions by President Donald Trump. People carried signs critical of Trump’s policies and executive orders as they lined the north and east sidewalks of the Ogle County Courthouse Square in the city's downtown. (Earleen Hinton)

Motorists who traveled through the busy intersection of state Routes 64 and 2 in the city’s downtown were encouraged to honk their horns in support.

A smaller group of Trump supporters also carried flags and signs supporting their stand in a “Flag Day” effort organized late in the week by Gary Schrimpsher of Oregon. On Saturday, he carried a large American flag with Trump’s likeness. One of the members of that group wore a shirt that said “You Don’t Have to Call Him King. You Can Call Him Daddy MAGA”.

“We’re all Americans,” Schrimpsher said. “We all have different ideas.”

Buttron and Schrimpsher and supporters of each camp even posed for photos, with each holding their signs.

There was some shouting back and forth between some members of each group, but no violence was observed.

“Everything went about 90% well,” said Schrimpsher. “They were nice. When we walked through with our Trump flag some yelled at us.”

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Attendees at the "No Kings" rally held in Oregon, Illinois on Saturday, June 14, 2025 hold their signs critical of the actions by President Donald Trump. (Earleen Hinton)