You blew us away, Mohawk Valley #NoKings Protesters!
"Nope, No Kings. Not in America."
Along with more than five million protesting patriots across America, IMV had an amazing day on Saturday for #NoKingsDay! We took to streets and sidewalks and parks and spread a message of defiance against authoritarianism. We celebrated the true values of America--a 250 year old constitutional republic with checks and balances on executive power. We built energy and community for a sustained movement to save democracy. As many of you noted in your hundreds of social media posts, the air was electric with the energy of the people standing up to the wanna be dictator in Washington.
Here is our IMV No Kings 6/14 Press Release. We had coverage from local TV news, print news, and independent media. THANK YOU FOR SHOWING UP!
Our official counters reported 1250 attendees at Ft. Stanwix in Rome, 1250 in Utica, and 500 in Herkimer for a total of 3000 protesters--and most of us agree that the number was even more. This is how we build the 3.5% of the population that is regularly showing up and actively engaged in a mass movement for democracy. We believe that the number on Saturday was more than twice the number for Hands Off rallies on April 5th, and that we will keep going and growing. More than 60,000 people showed up for Indivisible's Debrief call on Monday! So....
What's Next?
We are asking everyone who was at a rally on Saturday (or wished they were!) to go to the No Kings Next website: http://nokings.org/next.
Take at least ONE action right now from the suggested list. These actions include phone banking, letter writing, online training in political organizing, calling Members of Congress, and much more.
If everyone just feels good and goes home to stay, then we're done and Trump wins. But if we continue to show up at rallies, organize for political actions locally, prepare teams to message to our neighbors or activate in the case one of our neighbors is disappeared, then we will grow stronger and more effective. We don't have the luxury of taking the summer off. We need to keep the pressure on. We need the media and the public to see that five million people in America and 3000 in their own community are not going to rest while Trump continues to test the limits of our political system.
So click now on what's NEXT. And take an action today.
Disappeared in America Rally Next Thursday 6/26 in Utica
Join us for our next big Utica rally, Disappeared in America. Register HERE.
The rally on Thursday, June 26 will be part of a national day of action called "Disappeared In America" led by a coalition of immigrant rights, faith, rule of law, and pro-democracy organizations. We will mobilize to shine a light on a disturbing reality: under Trump’s immigration agenda, people like Kilmar Abrego Garcia, Rui Marras, and Juan Maldonado Zuniga are being forcibly detained, deported, and even disappeared. We will unite in demanding transparency, accountability, and due process for all. In America, we don’t let the government secretly detain or deport people without trial — that is not the country we claim to be. That’s not who we are. There will be a press conference with speakers.
A key focal point of this campaign will be to call on local sheriffs to refuse to cooperate with directives from ICE to engage in federal immigration enforcement, such as renting jail beds to ICE, participating in immigration raids, and transferring people to ICE detentions. Sheriffs have wide discretion in how much they cooperate with ICE. Participation in federal immigration activities places an additional burden on sheriffs’ offices and can erode local community trust in local law enforcement.
A core principle behind all Disappeared in America events is a commitment to nonviolent action. We expect all participants to seek to de-escalate any potential confrontation with those who disagree with our values.
We will continue the Thursday rallies through July, and plan a very big special rally on Thursday, July 17th, a national day of mobilization in memory of John Lewis on the 5th anniversary of his death in 2020. We'll be making some GOOD TROUBLE!
Want to Join a Pro-Democracy Rally Today?
Join the Kirkland Town Democrats and many IMV members on the Clinton Village Green Friday, June 20th at 4-5 pm. Bring your No Kings signs and signs about Medicaid and other critical services and freedoms threatened by MAGA.
Ready to Learn More About Effective Political Activism?
Sarah Reeske, IMV Steering Committee member and our NY State Indivisible Organizer, is hosting a Political Ecosystem Workshop on Wednesday, June 25th starting at 6:30pm that is open to all Indivisibles in NY.
This training is designed to help activists understand how to move from feeling outraged about injustice to building the power necessary to change it, especially through electoral work. It's the bridge for especially new activists to connect activism like protesting + advocacy to direct voter contact.
Sign On Letter to Congress: Don't Take Away Funding for Housing
This week the IMV Steering Committee voted to sign the organization sign-on letter circulated by the Greater Syracuse Tenants Network and Citizen Action Central New York Chapter opposing the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to housing.
There is another version of the letter that can be signed by individuals, and we encourage you to read it and consider adding your name here.
Climate Crisis Working Group
The Environment Gets Just One Win This Year as the NYS Legislative Session Ends
Indivisible Mohawk Valley is a member of the environmental lobbying groups Beyond Plastics and Renewable Heat Now, and led by the IMV Climate Crisis Working Group, many of you have lobbied in Albany, rallied in Syracuse, and made phone calls and sent emails in support of the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (PRRIA) and the NY HEAT Act. A March 2025 Siena College Poll showed that 73% of NYers favored the Plastics Reduction and Recycling bill. Unfortunately, in large part due to industry pressure and a lack of real commitment to environmental issues by the leadership of the NYS Assembly, for the second year, the PRRIA passed the NYS Senate but not the Assembly.
In some good news, a portion of the NY HEAT bill was passed, S.8417/A.8888, eliminating the 100 foot rule, an outdated rule that cost ratepayers money for unneeded gas pipeline expansion. This, combined with the All Electric Building Act, effectively puts an end to residential gas expansion in New York State. We're one of the first states in the nation to do it.
One big bright spot for the Packaging Reduction Act is that it can go straight to the Assembly floor when the 2026 Legislative Session begins in January -- it will not need to pass again in the Senate or pass through the Assembly committees. In the words of Judith Enck, President of Beyond Plastics, “We are not giving up. Plastic pollution is not going away, and neither are we. We will take a breath, regroup, and reorganize.” Read Judith’s full statement to supporters here.
"Banned Together" Film Hosted by OCPA to Suppport Defense of Democracy
"The Oneida County Pride Alliance, Inc. will be hosting a Mini Film Festival as part of Defense of Democracy's nation film festival on June 23rd at 6pm at the Kirkland Arts Center by showing Banned Together. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased here: https://givebutter.com/4KjYug .
Defense of Democracy is a nonprofit dedicated to protecting schools and libraries from book bans and other attacks from hate groups such as Moms for Liberty. Proceeds from ticket sales will go towards their efforts in protecting our local schools and libraries. As there has been recent activity with book banning and attacking local teachers in this area, OCPA chose to show Banned Together for our community viewing. This film documents the struggles of battling book bans in Texas and how communities must come together to combat hate.
For more information or to ask any questions, please email ace@oneidacountypridealliance.org
Sum Up and Motivation
Getting more than 5 million people into the streets to protest peacefully and non-violently an increasingly authoritarian regime is the work of thousands of volunteers.
Locally, we had three teams of organizers, safety marshals, media spokespeople, crowd counters, photographers, and a great bunch of people who worked on chants, speeches, and press. We are grateful for all the volunteers involved. Our safety marshal teams received communications from law enforcement expressing appreciation for their skillful work, which made law enforcement jobs easy and allowed them to stay outside the perimeter of our actions.
People are angry at what is happening in this country, but we kept our rallies energized by community and joy not hatred or fear, and that was true of more than 2000 events across the country, even after a Trump supporter assinated an elected Democratic legislator in Minnesota in the early hours of the morning on June 14th. Thank you for bringing your passion and for following the safety guidance of our rally organizers and safety teams.
Here is what Ezra Levin, Indivisible Co-founder, wrote in his Monday email following the rallies:
"We did it.
We set out to puncture Trump’s aura of inevitability. He wanted his military birthday parade to be a projection of overpowering strength, straight from the authoritarian playbook. He wanted to cow the opposition into submission. He wanted everyone from regular people to businesses, law firms, universities, media institutions, and other political leaders to see his might and bow down.
As our good friend Reverend Barber says: A king only becomes a king when we bow. And we didn’t bow.
Almost nobody came to Trump’s pathetic party. And ours was one of the biggest in American history -- literally.
You’ve seen more images of the 2,169 No Kings Day protests than you can count. Here's a montage of events in all 50 states you can watch.
...As Arndrea King, MLK III, and I wrote in an op-ed over the weekend, 'Authoritarian moments can feel permanent. But they never are... Trump is counting on our fear. We’re betting on our courage. Trump wants a crown, but we won’t bow. We will rise.'
We rose this weekend, and we’re not bowing anytime soon."
Democracy is not a spectator sport.
"No one let go of anyone's hand."
Breathe, then PUSH.
Follow us on Bluesky: @Indivisiblemv.bsky.social, on Instagram's Threads.net/@indivisiblemohawkvalley, on X (Twitter) using @indivisiblemv and of course on our Facebook page and IMV Activism Group.
