{"id":7847,"date":"2025-10-19T06:51:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-19T06:51:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/7847\/"},"modified":"2025-10-19T06:51:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-19T06:51:13","slug":"we-cant-stay-silent-thousands-join-no-kings-protest-across-the-lehigh-valley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/7847\/","title":{"rendered":"‘We can’t stay silent:’ Thousands join \u2018No Kings\u2019 protest across the Lehigh Valley"},"content":{"rendered":"

BETHLEHEM, Pa. \u2014 Thousands of Lehigh Valley residents gathered Saturday in parks, plazas and along busy intersections as part of nationwide \u201cNo Kings\u201d protests denouncing President Donald Trump and his administration\u2019s policies.<\/p>\n

The coordinated demonstrations \u2014 numbering more than 2,000 nationwide \u2014 spanned several Lehigh Valley communities, including Bethlehem Township, Salisbury Township, Easton and Bethlehem\u2019s Rose Garden.<\/p>\n

In Bethlehem, more than 6,000 protestors marched from the Rose Garden through North Bethlehem, moving up West Broad and Main streets before gathering at Payrow Plaza outside City Hall. Police directed traffic throughout the march was peaceful.<\/p>\n

\"ThousandsThousands gather at Payrow Plaza for \u201cNo Kings\u201d day march in Bethlehem, Pa., Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025 (Robbie Churetta for Lehigh Daily)<\/p>\n

Chants of \u201cShow me what democracy looks like \u2014 this is what democracy looks like\u201d and \u201cNo justice, no peace\u201d echoed through the crowd as participants waved American flags and homemade signs condemning authoritarianism and calling for accountability.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m with my family \u2014 my mom, friends, kids, husband \u2014 and we don\u2019t like what\u2019s going on,\u201d said Erin Moore of Bethlehem. \u201cWe\u2019d like to see some changes. I hope this administration gets held accountable for the crimes they\u2019ve been committing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leo Atkinson, a member of the steering committee for the Lehigh Valley Democratic Socialists of America, said his group joined to support the national movement and hand out information on local organizing efforts.<\/p>\n

\"noA man holds a sign reading \u201cDemocracy Not Oligarchy\u201d at Payrow Plaza for \u201cNo Kings\u201d day march in Bethlehem, Pa., Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025 (Robbie Churetta for Lehigh Daily)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to be fighting for democracy in this country, fighting for the rights of working people and marginalized groups,\u201d Atkinson said. \u201cI hope politicians see how many people come out and understand that people are ready for some change.\u201d<\/p>\n

Toni Fernandez, a South Side Bethlehem resident and volunteer with the Bethlehem City Democratic Committee, said she came to speak out against policies she feels have hurt working families.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe tariffs are hurting people, grocery prices are hurting people,\u201d Fernandez said. \u201cEveryone that I know \u2014 middle class, lower class, even upper class \u2014 they\u2019re all struggling right now, and silence is condoning what they\u2019re doing. So we can\u2019t be silenced.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Lehigh Valley protest was organized by Indivisible Lehigh Valley, led by Brooke, who said the movement\u2019s goal is to defend democratic values and mobilize voters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re at a pivotal point right now,\u201d she said. \u201cIf we don\u2019t start being able to rein some of this back in, we\u2019re going from being a liberal democracy to an illiberal democracy right before our eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Josh Siegel, Democratic candidate for Lehigh County Executive, attended and said he joined as both an elected official and a citizen.<\/p>\n

\"usRep. Josh Siegel speaks to the crowd at the Rose Garden in Bethlehem, Pa, ahead of the \u201cNo Kings\u201d day march in Bethlehem, Pa., Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025 (Jai Smith\/Lehigh Daily)<\/p>\n

\u201cI think as an elected official \u2014 but most importantly, just an American \u2014 everybody needs to show up in these moments and stand in solidarity,\u201d Siegel said. \u201cMost folks in this country agree on the issues. We\u2019ll reflect that at the ballot box, which is how we hold power accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Bethlehem Township, another crowd of roughly 500 to 600 people gathered for speeches and songs. Protesters there said they were motivated by fears for the country\u2019s direction and the erosion of civil rights.<\/p>\n

\"\"Around 500-600 demonstrators gather in Freemansburg, PA for the No Kings protest Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025 (Photo by: Cassandra Reyes\/Lehigh Daily)<\/p>\n

\u201cI work in education, and I think about the world my students are going into every single day,\u201d said one teacher, who declined to share her name. \u201cThe world we\u2019re setting up for them is the one they\u2019ll have to live in, and we can\u2019t stay silent about that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s \u201cNo Kings\u201d rallies followed a similar wave of demonstrations held in June, reflecting what organizers describe as a growing grassroots effort to push back against authoritarianism, defend voting rights and demand protections for immigrants and access to healthcare.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re still at it again today,\u201d Moore said, smiling as her young children waved handmade signs. \u201cBecause democracy only works if we do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jai Smith contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BETHLEHEM, Pa. \u2014 Thousands of Lehigh Valley residents gathered Saturday in parks, plazas and along busy intersections as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7848,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154],"class_list":["post-7847","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7847","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7847"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7847\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7848"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}