Kathy Larson organized this one with the Kodiak Action Network. She said she’ll keep pushing for more.
“Keep going! Because we need to change his mind, we need to get him out, or we need a point where he needs to listen to the people, not what he wants,” she said.
The meaning of rallies on May 1st have changed over time, but this year, many are protests of President Donald Trump’s actions, like cutting the budget for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and attempting to gut the Department of Education.
Worldwide, May Day is also known as International Workers’ Day, a celebration of labor.
Larson said she’s encouraged seeing so many people consistently showing up.
“A lot of them say ‘No kings!’ or ‘Stop the Chaos,’” she said.
Alaska’s senior senator, Republican Lisa Murkowski, supports protesting the president.
“I have been telling people, continue to raise your voice,” said the senator on April 29 on Alaska Public Media’s public affairs show, Talk of Alaska.
She said she’s excited to see so many people sharing their concerns with her and her peers in Alaska’s federal delegation, and wants to see the momentum continue, too.
“Whether it is a level of protest, whether it’s calling your members of Congress, whether it’s writing to us, I think that type of engagement is important and people shouldn’t feel discouraged because ‘Well I haven’t seen anything change since the last week that I went to go protest’ – keep the engagement up,” Murkowski said.
Engagement has varied at Kodiak protests. Attendance peaked at the second protest with about 200 people, with the others were similarly sized. All four were held at “the Y” intersection.
The protest on the island lasted for about two hours. Kodiak Action Network is already planning its next event and meeting.
