Lt. Gov. Austin Davis told an overflow crowd of protesters Saturday in downtown Greensburg that it was time for the opposition against President Donald Trump to be heard.
“We’re not going to stand for this. We’re going to stand up to Donald Trump,” Davis told a crowd of more than 1,000 people who gathered in front of the Westmoreland County Courthouse as part of the national No Kings protests.
“Donald Trump has been putting our families in danger and he has been creating chaos,” Davis said. “This is not the American we want. This is not the America that was founded. It’s time for each and every American to stand up for our Democracy.”
Westmoreland County, which voted has overwhelmingly supported Trump since 2016, has seen Democratic support wane over the last two decades. It still has the 12th largest concentration of Democratic voters in Pennsylvania with nearly 88,000 people, according to state voter registration statistics.
Saturday’s rally comes on the heels of April’s Hands Off protest that saw about 800 gather at the courthouse to oppose the Trump administration.
Former Westmoreland County Commissioner Tom Balya has seen large, enthusiastic Democratic-leaning crowds before in Greensburg.
Balya, served as head of the county government for 20-years throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, at a time when Democrats held political sway here.
“I think there is a great sense of frustration out there with what we are seeing around the country. We can’t accept fascism in our country,” Balya said as he surveyed the crowd.
Crowds of protesters jammed the public square, sidewalks and corners in an around the courthouse, chanting anti-Trump slogans, honking at passing vehicles and calling for change in Washington.
Few, if any, Trump supporters appeared to be in attendance. Local officials said there were no violent incidents or confrontations reported.
In addition to Davis and Balya, current Westmoreland County Commissioner Ted Kopas and former state Sen. Allen Kukovich addressed the crowd.
“The mad king doesn’t think we exist,” Kopas said. “He doesn’t want to hear us. So let him know who we are.”
Organizer Abby Graham-Pardus, who also coordinated April’s Hands Off rally in Greensburg, said the recent public opposition to Trump will continue in Westmoreland County.
“Today is about showing ourselves and showing there are lots of people who say what is happening isn’t OK,” Graham-Pardus said.
One of those protesters was retired Rev. Ronald Wanless of Ligonier, who said he opposes Trump administration policies including mass forced deportations and militarization of American cities.
“I am also a veteran and I don’t want these shoved down our gullet,” Wanless said.
Events were held across Western Pennsylvania — in Pittsburgh, Greensburg and Cranberry — using the No Kings name.
Those who came out cited a multitude of other reasons for joining the national movement to voice opposition to President Donald Trump and his administration’s policies.
Andrew Arsenault, 47, of North Huntington, said he traveled to the Pittsburgh protest because he’s worried how Trump’s policies affect his daughters.
“I’m afraid they’re gonna die,” he said. “I’m afraid they won’t get the health care they need, or they won’t have the choice to take care of their own selves.”
Saturday was billed as a nationwide day of defiance to protest the Trump administration. Events were held across Western Pennsylvania — in Pittsburgh, Greensburg and Cranberry — using the No Kings name.
Several hundred people came out to Cranberry’s main intersection of Route 19 and 228.
Another gathering in Mt. Lebanon later in the afternoon was attended by hundreds, according to Allegheny County Councilman Dan Grzybek.
No Kings organizers, who were not named, said demonstrations were held in more than 2,100 cities. By evening organizers were calling it a successful day of peaceful protests, according to an emailed statement.
No issues were reported at any of the Southwestern Pennsylvania events.