Huge turnout for “Hands Off!” in Chico Organizers want to maintain momentum in opposing Trump Administration

by Leslie Layton
posted April 7

Chico’s April 5 “Hands Off!” event – perhaps the largest demonstration in the city’s history – drew a surprisingly large crowd of people who rallied and marched to protest the Trump Administration in concert with protests across the country.

Some signs addressed the administration’s aggressive movement to strengthen the executive branch at the cost of the courts and Congress, with statements like, “Say no to fascists.” Many signs demanded that Social Security, Medicare and public education be left intact; one said “Democracies thrive with allies,” and another, “Even the Republicans are here.”

As people left the protest around 3:30 p.m., an organizer, Laurel Yorks, handed out Chico Peace Alliance cards and asked demonstrators to stay alert for future events that will be announced online. Yorks, who was herself stunned by the turnout, noted that downtown was “encircled by people demonstrating for democracy.”

Local organizers estimated that more than 3,500 people participated on a warm Saturday, gathering in Children’s Park to hear speakers and encircling downtown between East First and Sixth streets. Streams of drivers honked in support as they passed, and protesters carried signs addressing issues from Social Security cuts to Israel’s war on Gaza.

Protesters were guided by organizers down Main Street, around City Plaza, and then back to Children’s Park via Broadway. But as they arrived at the park, the starting point, there was still a sizeable contingent awaiting its turn to make the march. Traffic monitors were stationed at each intersection and ensured that demonstrators crossed streets in an orderly fashion in smaller groups.

The protest was organized by Chico Indivisible, the Democratic Action Club (DACC), Chico Peace Alliance, the local Sustain Ukraine, and Oroville Area Resistance. It was one of some 1,300 rallies across the country, and media reports indicate 3 to 5 million people nationwide participated.

Rally speakers – as well as the demonstrators – represented a range of political perspectives that is unusual for a local protest. Speakers included Sustain Ukraine’s Denise Flores; veteran Amanda Gaylord; progressive City Councilmember Bryce Goldstein; and DACC’s Audrey Denney.

“People got a chance to stay home in their own community [to protest],” said event organizer Kate McCracken of Chico Indivisible. “It’s important to stay in your own town and raise your voice, to be able to say that something is not right. We all know it and feel it. People got the chance to peacefully express how this country is going down the wrong path.

“There were no incidents, and that’s something I’m so proud of.”

McCracken said she participated in Chico’s “first peace march” in 1968. This event, she said, was the largest protest she has seen in the city “bar none.” The next event, she said, will likely be an “empty chair town hall,” the empty chair representing the lack of town halls held by Rep. Doug LaMalfa.

Chico State political science Professor Diana Dwyre attended, and in an interview today said that events like Hands Off! help activate voters. “It’s a good way to get people energized and mobilized,” she said, adding that President Trump may not be paying much attention to the size of the protests.

“I don’t think the White House is paying attention to the numbers. However, if people who were mobilized enough to attend contact their lawmakers” that could lead to a shift in Congress, she said. Members of Congress “track very carefully” the views their constituents express, particularly if they think those voters backed them.

Yorks from Chico Peace Alliance said that if this is a burgeoning movement, it has a “long road,” but the turnout gave her hope.

“It absolutely gives me hope,” Yorks said. “The goal is to keep it up and get our democracy back. We can’t stop until immigrants and foreign students are not getting kidnapped off the street.”

Leslie Layton is editor of ChicoSol.