Whitefish Crowd Marches in ‘Dump Trump’ Rally
A rally in Whitefish on April 19 drew around 250 anti-Trump protesters who decried a range of actions by the administration, including its broadsides against constitutional and human rights
By Zoë Buhrmaster
Around 250 opponents of President Donald Trump’s administration clamored down Second Street in Whitefish on Saturday morning, toting signs and banners embellished with political slogans such as “Protect Democracy” and balloons of red, white and blue. Some rang cow bells while another demonstrator pounded on a djembe drum. Each passing car horn brought a cheer for solidarity.
Flathead Democracy and the Montana chapter of the 50501, a national effort to unify 50 protests in 50 states on one day, organized the “Dump Trump” rally to “pick up trash” and “rally for our rights.” The state chapter also held protests in Missoula, Butte, Great Falls, Helena and a watch party in Whitehall on the same day.
Most demonstrators voiced a litany of concerns that motivated them to protest, citing a range of actions by the Trump administration including its broadsides against constitutional and human rights, its “assault on democracy,” the imposition of sweeping tariffs, and its efforts to rein in free speech, abandon public lands, roll back public research funding, and more.
“It’s hard to name one thing,” said Mary, a retired Glacier National Park employee who asked that her last name not be published. “Public lands is definitely something that’s near and dear, but there’s a lot.”
Protesters assembled at the Senior Citizens Center in Whitefish around 10 a.m. before walking down the sidewalks a mile to Grouse Mountain City Park, where several speakers addressed the crowd. They included Rebecca Miller, a representative from Valley Neighbors, a local organization that helps integrate refugees and immigrants into the community, and Russell Cleveland, a St. Regis resident who has declared his candidacy in the 2026 election for U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke’s seat in Congress. Dakota Adams, the estranged son of Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, also rallied the crowd.
“I was raised in one of these now mysteriously silent ani-government militias,” Adams said. “Now, in the absence of the people who have always claimed to be against power, being willing to stand up, simply because the boot is on the white, I mean right foot, we are going to have to do it.”
A couple local musicians sang original songs with lyrics about freedom, along with Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth,” while organizers served up chicken pozole.
As the group stood on grass that runs to the neighboring Whitefish Border Patrol station, several demonstrators voiced immigration issues as a primary reason driving them to protest.
Trina Holder, a Canadian whose family moved into the Flathead Valley when she was six months old, described a hesitancy to visit family members who still live across the border, despite holding a green card.
“This is never something I thought I’d have to do,” said Holder, referencing her decision to march in the demonstration. “I’m hesitant to go visit them, because I don’t want anything to happen. And if I’m worried about it, how much worse is it for other people?”
Another protester who is a first-generation American and whose family immigrated from Guatemala in the 70s voiced concern for her family and friends who are not white amid intensifying deportations.
“Even if you’ve been in this country for 50 years, they’re still going to try and kick you out by their standards,” she said. “I can pass [as white] but a lot of my personal family members, they can’t. A lot of my friends, they can’t.”
