Protesters, preachers, and painters: 500 show up at Enumclaw ‘No Kings’ demonstration

Published 1:45 pm Monday, March 30, 2026

Up to 500 Plateau and area residents gathered at the corner of Griffin St. and Porter Ave. on March 28 for the third national “No Kings” protest, joining millions across the country showing their opposition to President Donald Trump’s administration and policies.

By now, the signs, flags, and chants may be familiar — some showed their support for LGBTQ or immigrant rights and protections; others called for impeachment and imprisonment; many encouraged people to participate in democracy; and most simply labeled the president as a “traitor,” “fascist,” “clown,” or all of the above.

Peppered among the crowd were less than a dozen supporters of the president, sporting flags with his likeness, shirts of “I 3 Ice,” and the iconic red cap.

Opinions on the energy of the event were mixed among safety volunteers of Indivisible Enumclaw, the grassroots group that organizes these protests. Several commented that this demonstration was milder than the previous two, and while many cars passing by honked in encouragement (or, on the rare occasion, sped away or rolled coal), the loudest noise came from the speakers playing songs like “God Bless the USA” and “American Idiot”; organized chants from the crowd only came near the end of the two hour demonstration.

Numbers have dwindled as well — the June 14 demonstration estimated between 800 and 1,000 people attended, and the Oct. 18 saw between 600 and 700.

But spirits were high, and Indivisible Enumclaw saw the another $500 in donations roll in for Plateau Outreach Ministry’s food bank for a total of more than $1,000; more than 1,300 pounds of food have also been donated, and that weight doesn’t include the nine large boxes that filled Larry Boitano’s truck bed on the day of the event.

“I’m happy to see that people think about their community and the need to support each other,” the Indivisible Enumclaw representative said. “It’s all a blessing.”

Also looking to support the community was Ron Montgomery — though he was solely focused on the protesters’ spirituality, singing a stylized version of “The Star Spangled Banner” in an American Flag shirt and hat as he evangelized.

“I’d like to help people understand the misguidedness about their position as ‘No Kings’,” the Air Force Veteran senior said. “There is a king, but He’s the King of Glory, the King of Kings… I’m here because I love and I don’t want to see anyone live an unfruitful life or go to a devil’s hell.”

Weaving through the crowd with a reflective vest was Cristy Hammond, one of Indivisible Enumclaw’s safety volunteers tasked with making sure people stayed out of the street and be non-confrontational; she described the protests as “exhilarating.”

“You find a lot of people who are line-minded with you, and it energizes you to keep fighting,” she said. “That’s what I feel we have to do — we have no other options.”

And taking in the whole scene was Jon Bradham, who was using water colors to capture the moment. He said he’s normally on the street with his signs, but he decided to support the protest through his art this time around.

“It’s incredibly meaningful to me to be here and to support this in any way I can,” the artists said; with his 9,000 followers on Instagram and close to another 4,000 on Facebook, he hopes the painting will inspire others to “save our democracy.”

“Our county’s in really bad shape,” he continued. “We got to stand up and so what’s right, even through in uncomfortable sometimes.”