16-06-2025
Evanston ‘will not be silenced,' holds No Kings rally to protest Trump policies
An estimated 1,000 people filled Fountain Square in Evanston on Saturday for a No Kings rally protesting a wide range of President Donald Trump's policies. Similar rallies were taking place in most cities across the nation, including Chicago and many of its suburbs.
U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Mayor Daniel Biss and Evanston Township High School District 202 Board President Pat Savage-Williams were among the speakers who warned of the 'critical juncture' the country faces as Trump expands his deportation plan and other controversial policies.
Members of Indivisible Evanston, a local community activist group, led the crowd in chants of 'Hey hey, ho ho, it's the Gulf of Mexico,' 'No tyrants, no kings, democracy is everything,' 'Whose streets? Our streets. No soldiers on our streets,' and other slogans.
The rally was peppered with songs from Chicago area performers, including critically acclaimed Nora O'Connor of Chicago and local performer Margaret Nelson, who led the crowd singing 'Get the Money Out of Congress.'
Savage-Williams said the U.S. Department of Education, which Trump has proposed dismantling, was created to protect and serve all American students, in particular marginalized students.
'This isn't just about bureaucracy. It's about our children's futures and their relentless attack on diversity, equity and inclusion,' she said. 'It is overtly racist and threatens to unravel decades of hard-won progress on racial equality and civil rights.'
District 202 will not comply with Trump's demands, Savage-Williams said.
'Our students need us to continue to provide the resources, supports and services to facilitate their success,' she said. 'DEI is not an add-on. It is embedded in everything we do. Yes, we are running the risk of losing federal funds, and that makes me very nervous. But we would not know who we are if we cut our equity initiatives.'
Biss said every time he thinks Trump's actions and policies can't get any worse, somehow they do. He accused the president of facism and trying to instigate violence among Americans.
'This is the fascist playbook,' he said. 'They know what they're doing and doing what they can. They're trying to disable anyone who wants to push back.'
Biss said Americans must use the 'anti-fascist playbook.'
'When we stand up to them, they don't stand a chance,' he said. 'When we fight them in the courts, they have to defend their bogus arguments. Even when we lose, we slow them down.'
Patrick Hanley, Winnetka environmental activist and cofounder of Operation Swing State, said he apologized to his British wife because of the rally's name, which Hanley said implies an attack on kings.
'I had to tell her it's not personal,' he said. 'Kings just don't work out well here.'
Hanley urged the crowd to view the country's future through the lens of sustainability.
'There's nothing sustainable about targeting individuals in the street without due process,' he said. 'This is not the country we signed up for. This is not the country our ancestors died for.'
Rev. Eileen Wiviott of the Unitarian Church of Evanston said the crowd's presence sends the message to the Trump administration that Americans 'will not be silenced and will not be complicit.'
'This might be the most brazen and corrupt regime we've known in our lifetime,' Wiviott said. 'But this regime will not survive. They always fall because the people will always bring them down.'
Attendees came from throughout the North Shore and Chicago.
Betty Brucato of Evanston said she and friend Nan Carlson of Chicago, who attended the rally with her, are 'outraged' by Trump's behavior and policies.
'I'm still in shock that he's president,' Brucato said. 'He's violating the law.'
'I'm losing my mind,' Carlson said. 'Waiting for the mid-term elections is not a solution when he's violating the law. He claims he's a Republican and he goes into California and takes over the National Guard. That is not a Republican value.'
