Dozens of anti-Donald Trump protesters rallied on the steps of the Olympia Capital Building late Friday afternoon.
"No KKK, no fascist USA, no Trump!" Anti-Trump protesters rally on steps of Olympia Capital. 4:57pm @KIRO7Seattle pic.twitter.com/a0qQeDhFja
— Alison Grande (@AlisonKIRO7) November 12, 2016
Demonstrations in Washington's capitol started around noon on Friday. Supporters of Planned Parenthood are rallied in front of the Planned Parent building.
A Facebook page for the event said, “This is a space where we can come together and discuss how the election results have already impacted and will continue to impact rights to healthcare and safety.”
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Photos posted of the event page showed protesters holding signs with phrases such as “My body, my choice,” “Abort Donald Trump,” and “I stand by PP.”
The page said the event would end by 3:30 p.m. “in solidarity with the 'Protest Trump Olympia' event happening at the Capitol building.”
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KIRO 7 Chopper flew over Olympia, where we saw another protest that appeared to be demonstrating the North Dakota Pipeline construction around 3 p.m.
When flying over the Washington State Capitol building just before 6 p.m., chopper video showed about 70 people gathered on the steps for the anti-Trump protest.
About a hundred people walked through the streets of Olympia, occasionally getting into shouting matches with observers.
One protester, Nick Jeffreys, said an observer used the ‘N’ word and threatened to stab the protesters.
Jaiden Grayson, who marched with the crowd, said, “My heart is heavy, because I think that we have made so much progress as a nation, and I think that being an American was almost a beautiful thing, for me as a black woman. It really was. And to hear that so much of the progress that we made is being threatened, is terrifying. It is. I fear for my mom. I fear for myself. I fear for any person of color.”
Later in the evening, the different groups converged at State Avenue and Jefferson Street. Protesters told KIRO 7 they wanted to block a train from carrying fracking sands to North Dakota.
“We don’t want it to be lost anger,” said Mary Silva, referring to protests where people have mostly shouted and even vandalized property.
Silva said it’s important to highlight causes that are threatened under a Trump presidency.
“You have a purpose, and you have a goal. You have something to reach. If you’re just expressing emotion, it’s irrational. You’re not going to get anything done,” she said.
Silva said she had intended to get a PhD and become a professor. Instead, when she finishes her master’s degree this year, she said she wants to go to work immediately for environmental causes. She said President-Elect Trump’s denial of climate change creates urgency to act now.
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