No Kings Day II protest in Orange draws hundreds

ORANGE – Saturday’s No Kings Day II rally in Orange drew more than 700 people, with many speaking to the threat they feel is posed by the Trump administration.

Colorful signs with a variety of messages were held by protesters crowding both sides of South Main Street and Memorial Park. Some people banged drums, others donned costumes and others shouted slogans.

Many American flags could be seen waved by demonstrators and still more planted in the ground. While passing motorists tended to honk in agreement, there was an occasional shout of derision aimed at the demonstrators. The Dave Bulley Band provided the entertainment for the event.

“It’s just shocking, the things that are being normalized. I’m hoping this turnout today will send a message.”

Marcia murphy

One of the organizers, Royalston resident Ruth Suyenaga of Indivisible North Quabbin, said she was very happy with the turnout. The weather, she added, couldn’t have been better, complementing the enthusiasm of everyone taking part.

Addressing the crowd, Suyenaga said, “Look around at how many of your neighbors are here today. There are 2,600 more gatherings like this today around the country; millions standing with us to say that we want to do something to take back our democracy. It is the largest mass non-violent demonstration that this country has ever seen. As they say, there are more of us than there are of them.”

She went on to urge attendees to make sure they are registered to vote and get involved in the 2026 midterm elections.

Other speakers included John Dodge, founder of the North Quabbin Veterans Center in Athol, who led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance; state Rep. Susannah Whipps, I-Athol; and Allen Young, author and LGBTQ+ activist.

This call for solidarity was reflected in the number of demonstrations occurring across the world. According to an Oct. 18 press release by No Kings, the coalition of progressive organizations behind the June and October No Kings Day demonstrations, nearly seven million Americans gathered at 2,700 actions across the United States. In the Pioneer Valley, similar demonstrations were held in Ashfield, Greenfield, Northampton, Springfield and Holyoke, among other communities.

The June protests in more than 1,400 locations across the nation coincided with the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary parade in Washington, D.C., which also fell on Trump’s 79th birthday. That same weekend, National Guard and U.S. Marines were deployed in Los Angeles following unrest over federal immigration enforcement in the city, and Congress was preparing to vote on Trump’s spending bill, known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which sparked protests nationally and in Greenfield on July 17.

Karen Idoine of Wendell said, “After the first Trump administration, my protest was to hand-write the U.S. Constitution and that taught me a lot. That’s one of the reasons I’m out here today; I think our Constitution is being violated.”

She dismissed statements from U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson and other Republicans that Saturday’s demonstrations amounted to “Hate America” protests.

“It’s so ridiculous; I don’t know how anybody could believe it,” she said. “We’re here because we love America.”

“I’m protesting all of the things Trump is doing against the Constitution,” said Marcia Murphy of Templeton. “The Republican Congress is just rolling over and letting him do things that are hurting people.”

Murphy added she is worried about the country she will be leaving to her children and grandchildren.

“It’s just shocking, the things that are being normalized,” Murphy said. “I’m hoping this turnout today will send a message. I really don’t think the majority of the country agrees with the things that are happening.”

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.