ALAMOSA — It wasn’t long after the No Kings Protest in Alamosa first began at noon on Saturday that the crowd quickly grew to a size not previously seen at protests that have taken place over the last few months. The intersection of Main Street and State Avenue was teeming with people, sometimes two and three deep, and extending in both directions for at least several blocks.

The protest was largely organized and publicized by a local, Valley-based, grassroots organization named “Indivisible”, part of a larger organization by the same name that has, essentially, come into existence in the months since Donald Trump took office in 2025. A “conservative” estimate by one of the local organizers placed the number at “at least 500, probably more”, twice as many people who have shown up to protest before.

The handmade protest signs bore many of the same messages, opposing current immigrant practices, the need to save healthcare and, very often, opposition to what many saw as the destruction of democracy captured in the single word “resist”.

The support was as strong on the streets as it was on the sidewalks with an almost constant cacophony of horns blaring in support from passing vehicles. 

There were some signs of support for Trump, largely dwarfed in numbers by the protesters and sound of support on the street, including one truck that bore a message praising Charlie Kirk.

About halfway through the protest, a group of five or six young men who appeared to be in their early twenties came to the protest, jumping up and down among the crowd and running into the intersection, yelling, “Go Trump!”

However, as has happened at previous protests when other pro-Trump supporters made their viewpoints known, their actions didn’t elicit any response from the protesters other than people making certain they didn’t get bumped into by the young men as they went down the sidewalk.

While the mood of the protest seemed energetic and almost festive, when individual protesters were asked why they had come to the event, the answers revealed how deeply concerned many of the people are about current affairs.

Liza Marron, an elected official who was clear that she protesting as a private citizen, said that what brought her to the protest was her love of democracy and obligation to preserve it. “I’m most concerned about the erosion of democracy. The disintegration of checks and balances. Immigrants being treated with no due process, the erosion of women’s rights, the division in our country," she said. "The USDA website says 'Democrats are responsible for the shutdown' – not only is that not true but putting that on the website is a violation of the Hatch Act. I’m also concerned about the destruction of health care and am proud of those legislators who are standing up for people in opposition to that.”

As a citizen, Marron’s message to Trump is, “Don’t you have grandchildren? Aren’t you concerned about the legacy you’re leaving? Don’t you think about those things?”

Rick Mann, another protester and resident of Alamosa, said, “The lies brought me out here this morning. I oppose what is happening. Other than voting, there’s nothing much I can do about it other than coming to these protests. And we’ve been here every time.”

Alamosa resident Fawn Tatro told the Valley Courier, “I’m here to protest Donald Trump and what he’s doing. He’s taking healthcare away, food stamps away. He’s a bully. If you don’t want to raise bullies, you shouldn’t elect one to the White House. I’m a stroke patient and have trouble walking but I still came here because this is very important.”

Paul Wertz, also a public official who was at the protest as a private citizen, said, “I’m here to represent the right side of history, to make sure fascists don’t take over our country. I believe we’re watching a fascist takeover of the United States, and we need to come here to show our kids what’s right.” He said he’s been politically active before “but not like this.”

Patti Kelley, a resident of Alamosa, said, “So many things are going on. It’s hard to pinpoint one thing that brought me to the protest. I’ve been politically active for a long time, but I came out this morning because of what’s happening with immigration, the bullying, the aggression of the president. I’ve never seen it to that level in our leaders before and all the things that follow as a result.”

There were no reports of violence at the protest in Alamosa, as was also the case across the country. With protests taking place across 2700 different locations – including cities and small towns – in the nation, it is estimated that about 7 million – possibly as high as 8 million people – took part, making it the largest protest in American history and doubling the number of people who participated in the No Kings Protest held earlier this year. There were additional protests in several European nations but those numbers were not included in the tally.