As President Donald Trump prepared to host a military parade in Washington to mark the 250th anniversary of the Army and his 79th birthday, thousands of Atlanta residents took to the streets for “No Kings” protests across the metro area.
Protests occurred on Saturday around the country to denounce the $45 million parade and to show continued support for immigration protests in Los Angeles. Reports indicate millions of people attended as many as 2,000 protests across the U.S.
Just as protestors were gathering in downtown Atlanta near the state Capitol and in midtown around Atlantic Station, news broke about the assassination of Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman, the top Democrat in the House, and her husband.
State Sen. John A. Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were also shot multiple times at their home, but remain alive as of reporting on Saturday afternoon.
According to The New York Times, the assailant who remains at large has now been identified as Vance Boelter. Police officials reportedly found a “manifesto” in Boelter’s car targeting many other Democratic lawmakers and other officials in the state, including Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar.
Concerns for personal safety has been a priority for many lawmakers in the wake of Jan. 6 and Trump’s subsequent pardon for many of those convicted in the unprecedented attack on the U.S. Capitol in 2021.
In response to the Minneapolis tragedy, Trump took to Truth Social, writing: “I have been briefed on the terrible shooting that took place in Minnesota, which appears to be a targeted attack against State Lawmakers. Our Attorney General, Pam Bondi, and the FBI, are investigating the situation, and they will be prosecuting anyone involved to the fullest extent of the law. Such horrific violence will not be tolerated in the United States of America. God Bless the great people of Minnesota, a truly great place!”
Former Vice President Kamala Harris wrote on Twitter: “I am devastated by the loss of Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, in a horrifying act of violence. Our prayers are with their children and all who loved them, and with State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, who were also targeted.
“Melissa Hortman was an outstanding public servant. She passed legislation that enshrined freedoms and increased opportunity for the people of Minnesota. I saw her impact firsthand when I was with her in Minnesota and will remember her compassion, humor, and sense of service.”
Read More: Atlanta Immigration Protest Draws Hundreds Amid Tear Gas and Fireworks
Before news of the tragic shooting broke, Lee and Nicole Johnson attended the ACLU-sponsored rally downtown at Liberty Plaza across from the Georgia state Capitol to support their 18-year-old daughter Willah, an aspiring journalist planning to attend Kennesaw State in the fall.
When asked why she wanted to attend the “No Kings” protest today, Willah expressed concerns about Trump’s stance on immigration and his “his total disregard for the human beings in this country… their rights, their beliefs, and their feelings.”
At the “No Kings” protest in midtown, Eric and David Lewis marched along the 17th Street Bridge in the rain.
“I’m out here because I don’t like seeing what’s happening to the country,” Eric Lewis told Capital B Atlanta.
“We’re dissatisfied with the way things are going,” David Lewis said.
For Jamilah (who chose not to share a last name), the midtown protest was a continuation of her 2020 social justice participation.
“I decided to come out because I am a Black queer woman, and it’s important,” she said. “What’s happening in LA is abhorrent. Donald Trump is staging a hostile takeover of our country. I was outside for the George Floyd protests, and I’m outside now.”
For Kristen Folsom, she told Capital B Atlanta her ancestors endured worse so that she could live the life she has today.
“I could not stand by and let the country fall apart when I have children who have to live here,” Folsom said while carrying a homemade sign at the midtown protest.
Folsom was also concerned that the president’s words could spark even more political violence.
“This is a dangerous time that we’re in. We’re back in the 60s, and this is what it was like for my people in the 60s. And if this continues, and Trump keeps on with the rhetoric, inciting violence like this, we’re gonna see more and more of that, not just in Minnesota, all across the nation.”
Two recent high school graduates from Clarkston High School came out to the midtown protest at the invitation of their former teacher. As first generation immigrants, they told Capital B Atlanta they thought it was the right thing to do.
“I think the people who are poor and working here shouldn’t be targeted,” Abenizer (featured above on the left) said. “We should really be going after the rich stealing from the poor. When there are poor people struggling we shouldn’t be sending all this money to the military we should be helping people.”
Abenizer’s friend, who shares the same name felt the president was “using immigrants as a scapegoat.”
When asked about the deadly shooting in Minnesota, protestors Maria Smith and Dawn Franklin both thought the president shared some of the blame.
“I 100% think he’s responsible for it,” Smith told Capital B Atlanta.
“It’s his way of governing, and he’s an instigator and he doesn’t care about the results because he likes the power,” Franklin said.
When asked what brought them out to midtown, Franklin said she was frustrated and fatigued in the current climate. For Smith, the answer was about the future.
“I came out because I have kids and I want them to live in a better world than we have right now,” Smith said.
At a protest sponsored by the Party for Socialism and Liberation in Chamblee, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that police officers asked protestors wearing masks and other face coverings to remove them. Two demonstrators were reportedly taken away in handcuffs.
There are also reports police deployed tear gas to clear protestors along Chamblee Tucker Road.
“No Kings” protests were also held in Decatur, Suwanee, Macon and Savannah.
Follow Capital B Atlanta for more updates as we follow this developing story.
