WACO, Texas (KWTX) – Hundreds of protesters gathered in Waco and Belton Saturday as part of No Kings Day, joining rallies across the nation against the Trump administration.<\/p>\n
In Waco, people lined the streets near the intersection of Waco Drive and Valley Mills, expressing discontent with the current administration\u2019s policies regarding issues such as immigration and human rights.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m here to speak out and stand up for Christian values and American values,\u201d said Donna Wright, a protester.<\/p>\n
Mary Mann with the McLennan County Democratic Party said the demonstration represents a critical moment for the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are at a crossroads in our nation\u2019s history. We may be 249 years old, but we want to get to the 250th anniversary of our proud nation, and be proud about it. Not as we are today, afraid,\u201d Mann said.<\/p>\n
In a press conference on Friday, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson voiced his disagreement with the No Kings movement.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis rally is not about freedom; it\u2019s about the opposite. For many of our Democrat colleagues, tomorrow is about creating really a spectacle. That\u2019s what they\u2019ve been doing here every day, the shutdown with their little TikTok videos and their publicity stunts, and they\u2019re going to do it in a much larger venue,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n
Johnson added that despite his concerns, Americans have the right to exercise First Amendment freedoms.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, every American has every right to exercise their First Amendment freedoms. I\u2019m personally a big advocate of that. Republicans, by the way, are the party that fights to maximize your liberty, and we believe just as our founders did that every American has been endowed by God Himself with unalienable rights, and that includes the rights of life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n
For protesters like James Yasko, taking the chance to voice his opinion is about setting an example for future generations.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me personally, and I think this is true for the rest of us at Indivisible, we want to be able to say down the road, whether that\u2019s 2 decades from now or years from now, to our children and grandchildren, that we did something. That we wanted to be part of something to show that this isn\u2019t what America is really about,\u201d Yasko said.<\/p>\n
According to the McLennan County Democratic Party, 1,200 people participated in the Waco demonstration. In Belton, hundreds gathered at the Bell County Courthouse to express similar concerns.<\/p>\n
KWTX reached out to the McLennan and Bell County Republican Party chairs for comment regarding the protests, but has not received responses.<\/p>\n
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