A large crowd gathered at Aurora’s McCarty Park on Saturday to push back against President Donald Trump and his administration, joining with other “No Kings” protests taking place across the region and country.
American and Mexican flags flew alongside signs like “Melt ICE,” “Immigration Makes America Great,” “No Police State,” “Courts Not Cages” and, of course, “No Kings.” Children played on the park’s playground while protestors chanted “This is what democracy looks like!”
Stephanie Bernet, an organizer of the protest, said it was a shame Aurora didn’t have a “No Kings” protest when other nearby communities previously did. She’s just a regular person, she said, but she signed up to organize it when she saw that no one else had, she told The Beacon-News during the Saturday protest.
“We really wanted to make sure that our neighbors, and each other, knew we’re not alone,” Bernet said. “We’re here. We see what’s happening.”
And what’s happening, she said, is that federal agents — which she called “kidnappers” — are here in the community. Aurora Mayor John Laesch recently condemned increased federal immigration enforcement efforts in the city after protests earlier this month.
Bernet said she partnered with Kendall County’s chapter of Indivisible, a national progressive political organization, to make the Aurora protest happen.
On Saturday, it appeared to be a regular day at McCarty Park before around 11 a.m., when setup for the protest began. Although the official start time wasn’t until noon, a sizable crowd had already gathered by around 11:30 a.m.
The protest kicked off with quick remarks from Bernet before the mic was turned over to Mayor Laesch.
During his speech, he said communities across the nation are “experiencing a federal government like no generation ever has,” noting immigration enforcement in previously safe areas, the National Guard being deployed domestically and federal funds withheld from the state.
These “unprecedented” times require people to work together to protect their community and protect each other, he said.
“I want to speak first to the community and let you know that I’m acutely aware of the growing fear and anxiety surrounding recent ICE raids,” Laesch said. “The temperature in Aurora is heating up, and it is important that we as a community continue to work together through peaceful demonstrations to exercise our First Amendment rights without inciting violence.”
A variety of other community members, including city government officials, followed Laesch in speaking to the gathered crowd. Later, protestors moved out of the park and onto the sidewalk as cars driving by honked in apparent support.
Signs held by protestors covered a variety of criticisms against Trump’s administration as well as messages in favor of democracy and immigration.
“I just don’t want to become part of a fascist country,” Sandy Svensson said when asked why she came out to the protest. “That pretty much encompasses everything.”
Terry Bermes, whose Labrador Retriever named Maeve was adorned with signs saying “Labs against fascism” and “Fleas love Trump,” said he has never in his 67 years of being alive seen “such a threat to what makes America, America.”
“You can’t be complacent, because if you’re complacent, they win,” Bermes said. “I didn’t get all those A’s in government and history class to sit back and watch it when it really is under attack, and this republic is under attack. This is an authoritarian government now.”
The crowd began to disperse around the scheduled end time of 2 p.m.
In a speech at the event around this time, state Rep. Barbara Hernandez, D-Aurora, said she was happy to see the crowd, which was peaceful, because “this is what we need.”
rsmith@chicagotribune.com
