By Pam Wright
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
They’ll be no kings on King July 5.
That’s the day local citizens are invited to take part in a “No Kings” protest in Chatham. It’s taking place at the corner of King and Third streets in downtown Chatham.
Organizer Kai Wood said the goal is to “show solidarity” with residents in the United States who are opposed to U.S. President Donald Trump’s policies, notably the immigration policy. That dissent was marked across the U.S. on June 14 as millions of ordinary Americans came together to express dissatisfaction with government.
As a mom with two young children, Wood said she is stepping up to resist authoritarianism.
“What we are seeing in the U.S. is pulling it towards a dictatorship,” the Chatham native said in a recent interview with The Voice. “He’s (Trump) intentionally deporting people who aren’t actually doing anything illegal. I believe everyone deserves to live and not struggle and not live in fear of their world being torn up.”
Wood said it’s important for Canadians to show solidarity with U.S. citizens as they attempt to uphold democracy.
“I’d rather be able to do this than just sit back and let it happen,” she added, noting it’s a positive step to join with others and take action.
Wood points out that no government has been able to withstand a challenge from a nonviolent protest movement where 3.5 per cent of the population actively participates.
“We’re almost there,” Wood said of the U.S. resistance as an estimated 11 million people took part in No Kings protests on June 14 in hundreds of American cities.
In Canada, on that same date, No Tyrants rallies took place in Toronto and Vancouver to support American dissent. In Toronto, protestors gathered in front of the U.S. consulate to make their voices heard.
The same day Trump spearheaded a military parade in Washington D.C. to mark the U.S. Army’s 250th birthday and his own 79th birthday. When it comes to military parades, Wood said the only difference between the United States and North Korea, is that supreme leader Kim Jong Un orders its citizens to attend that country’s military parades.
Because Chatham-Kent is located so close to the border, Wood said Trump’s tariffs and policies can’t help but impact Chatham-Kent’s economy and quality of life.
But there’s more to it she said, as Wood has a close personal friend in Illinois who could be targeted.
“It does hit home,” she explained. “He is in a minority and I know he’s at risk, so it does affect me.”
However, her role as a parent is her biggest motivator.
“I want to be able to raise them in a world where they could come out if they need to,” she added, noting she’s a supporter of the LGTBQ2S+ community that has come under fire in the U.S. “We’ve got to make a better world than it is.”
Anyone seeking information on the protest is asked to email [email protected]. It will run from noon to 3 p.m.
This is one of the dumbest things I have seen in a while. What on earth does she expect to accomplish? I really don’t think Trump is going to worry about a little protest in Chatham Ontario. If you want to protest something, how about you protest the Liberal policies that crushed our economy, drove investment out of the country, and increased homelessness and drug addictions, long
before Trump’s tariffs? At least your protest would then be in the right country.