On Saturday afternoon, downtown Juneau’s Overstreet Park was packed full of protesters. Tahku, the whale sculpture, towered over the crowd that gathered to partake in a No Kings protest — a nationwide protest against President Donald Trump’s recent policies and actions.
The protests took place on the same day as a military parade in Washington to celebrate the Army’s 250th birthday. It coincided with Trump’s 79th birthday. Juneau’s protest was just one of thousands of protests held across cities in the U.S., including in many Alaska.
More than 1,500 Juneauites joined hundreds of thousands of people across the country. Jorden Nigro emceed the event in Juneau on Saturday.
“Today, on Donald Trump’s birthday, he is throwing himself a military parade,” she said as the crowd booed. “A draft dodger who continues to destroy what our service folks sign up to defend.”
She said many of the president’s recent policies and actions are attacks on democracy and human rights.
“Ripping healthcare for millions of people is violence. Hunger is violence, poverty is violence, and disappearing people is violence,” she said.
A handful of speakers were invited to talk to the crowd, including Nina Edwards, a master’s of public health student at the University of Alaska Anchorage and a member of the Alaska Native Sisterhood.
“Although we’re a small town in southeast Alaska, I’m alarmed at how deeply and personally we have felt the effects of national policy,” she said.
She raised an alarm about recent policies seeking to cut back public health funding. Billions of federal dollars could be cut from Medicaid and other government benefits if Trump’s spending bill becomes law.
“One by one, important programs are being dismantled when right now, we need more services and not less,” she said. “It is heartbreaking to be told that programs promoting health for us all no longer align with American values.”
Seasoned protester Jean Shannon said she’s proud to live in a community that embraces activism. Juneau voters were split in the 2025 presidential election. While downtown and Douglas voters overwhelmingly leaned blue, five precincts from the Juneau International Airport to Mendenhall Valley went for Trump.
“I’ve never been this scared for my life, and I protest against the Vietnam War,” she said. “After having lived through the 60s, I can see how momentum builds, and you can effect change when people stand up and just don’t lie down anymore.”
A live band sang an iteration of Bob Marley’s protest song ‘Get Up Stand Up.’ After the speeches, people marched to Egan Drive to continue the protest.
