I attended the No Kings demonstration on Saturday in Warrensburg, NY, the largest of the many Adirondack small towns in northern Warren County. It was an hour-and-a-half demand for a return to American values like free speech, the right to assemble, and due process before your peers. It was also a remarkable moment in this small deep red community.
Honestly, I didn’t expect much. Although I’m sure there must have been at least one, I can’t recall a single protest about anything in last 25 years in Warrensburg.
The community is more widely known for its annual fall World’s Largest Garage Sale, and as an adjunct to the Americade motorcycle rally in nearby Lake George. It’s a small town in small town America, named for Revolutionary War Patriot Dr. Joseph Warren.
From the 1970s through the 1990s, it was a hotbed of property rights activists opposing the Adirondack Park Agency (APA), established in 1971 to protect the Adirondack Park from over-development. A prominent landmark in Warrensburg for decades was a large anti-APA sign.
As a journalist, sometimes activist, sometimes concerned citizen, I’ve been to many protests. I had hope it wouldn’t be so small as to be embarrassing, but considered there may only be a handful of people, maybe 50 if there was a great turnout around the small gazebo where two main streets come together.
Much to my surprise, the streets were lined with people. Eight or nine blocks of sidewalks adjacent to the gazebo were crowded with demonstrators. I took a walk around what several independent estimates put at 600-700 people.
There was a joyous carnival-like tone to the crowd. American flags were everywhere. There was a folk band playing at the gazebo – some chanting, some cheering when passing cars signaled their approval. The most common reaction was along the lines of “I’m so glad we’re not alone in this.”
At first there were no counter-demonstrators. Eventually, up to six large-pick-ups and a car or two began circling the blocks flying numerous Trump flags, some where blaring right-wing country music. It seemed they arrived one by one, and formed-up in an impromptu way. The word went out not to engage with them.
They got a little aggressive a few times. Burn-outs, some “plow waving” and the occasional excessive speed in the crowded intersection. They yelled out incomprehensible somethings as they passed the already boisterous crowd that paid them little attention.
With his young daughter in the passenger seat seemingly stunned by the spectacle of it all, one driver used his truck’s loud speaker to occasionally berate the crowd, but it was so loud and distorted it was largely unintelligible.
There was only a couple tense moments. Two people had an altercation at the nearby gas station, where several pro-Trump regime people stood around the gas pumps and watched. A County Sheriff Community Liaison Officer was immediately on the scene, having been nearby at the request of organizers concerned for the safety of demonstrators.
In the hub-bub a seemingly drunk man pranced around the intersection hollering and waving a 2024 Trump flag for about 10 minutes. Another Trump flag waving man in a Santa Claus suit in the back of a pick-up lapped the blocks again and again.
I found it strange that these neighbors, some whom I know, would devote their time and energy toward harassing people exercising their most important right – the right to be heard. Why bother?
A lot of the signs were historically themed. I met several fellow veterans, some with connections to my own submarine service. I wondered what these counter-demonstrators thought of us.
Afterward, the local restaurants – and the new cannabis store – were filled with people supporting their local economy. Our little group stopped for a bite at a historic inn and then for a drink at the old Agricultural Hotel (Ashe’s).
Built in the 1830s, it has low ceilings, and the standard Adirondack live-edge plank bar. It’s certainly seen its share of political discussions, though more often nights here are marked by laughter, or tears. Our favorite bartenders greeted us as always.
Several of the counter-protestors in those trucks were there too. They played some of my favorite classic country songs on the jukebox, but the one that created the loudest singing, the most dancing, and the greatest joy from them was a gay anthem they played by Whitney Houston.
It was a strange day. I was reminded how complicated rural life can be. I was enheartened by so many of my neighbors standing up for our real American values of freedom and justice.
Sunday was another day in the North Country. I spent it watching the first NASCAR Cup Series race held in Mexico. They sang both countries’ anthems and the Mexico City venue announced in English and Spanish.
Daniel Suarez, NASCAR’s only Mexican-American and the first foreign-born driver to win a NASCAR national series championship, led the race at one point. It was ultimately won by Shane Van Gisbergen, the first New Zealander to win in the Cup Series, by a record margin.
I wondered who those counter-protestors were cheering for.
New York Almanack is reporting on the Trump regime’s impacts in New York State, but we can’t do it without your help. Please support this work.
A protestor’s sign at the No Kings demonstration in Warrensburg, June 14, 2025.
Source link
