BOZEMAN — Saturday, downtown Bozeman was quite the sight, as thousands of folks gathered for what Bozeman Police are calling one of the largest protests they’ve ever seen.
Saturday saw millions of people across the country, including multiple cities in Montana, take to the streets for what is being called 'No Kings Day' protesting against the Trump administration.
Curious about the massive protest that filled the streets of Bozeman? Watch our video to see the voices of the demonstrators and the impact they’re making
“There’s a lot of frustration. Definitely a lot of frustration. And fear. A lot of people are afraid,” says Kayla Gerrity.
We interviewed a number of protesters at the rally. One woman Kayla Gerrity says, “I’ve been to all the protests. It’s really great to see people coming out. I hope they take action”.
Kayla says this protest stands out.
“Do you think this was the biggest one so far?” we asked. “Seems like it, yeah,” Kayla confirmed.
Indivisible Bozeman organized the protest. In a statement, they say: “More than 6,000 people of all political persuasions gathered on Main Street in Bozeman to exercise our constitutional right to protest on public sidewalks.”
“Oh I think it was more than 1,000 for sure. I’ve heard estimates to whether it’s 1,000 to 6,000. I think probably somewhere in between there” states Andy Knight
Knight has been with the Bozeman police for around 25 years. He tells me he’s seen many protests, especially in recent years. But the ‘No Kings’ protest?
“I think this is one of the biggest protests I’ve seen since I’ve worked here. And I think that was what was really interesting about this. It was one of the safest ones I’ve seen, too,” says Knight.
Knight tells me there were no anti-protests and only one violent situation occurred. A semi-truck driver was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct after threatening protesters with a hammer. I asked Knight how the Bozeman Police were able to keep thousands of people safe during the protest.
“It’s important for citizens to know we plan for these. For every protest or every event? We do what is called an operations plan,” says Knight.
Where Bozeman police work with protest organizers to determine any areas of concern, such as anti-protest, that could be. The operation plan was successful for the ‘No Kings’ protest.
“I can’t tell you how many times the folks that were downtown thanked us for being there. We know that just having officer presence can be a deterrent for anybody wanting to potentially do something they shouldn’t do,” says Knight.
Knight tells me that as Bozeman sees more protests, the police department will continue working to make sure they remain peaceful.
