On April 5th, 13 Orange County nonprofit organizations – Lavender Democrats OC, WAVE, Activate America, OC Indivisible Coalition, 50501 OC, and OC Huddle – are joining together to host the NO KINGS OC/Hands-Off! Orange County Fights Back Rally, a pro-democracy rally at Sasscer Park in Santa Ana on April 5, 2025, from 1:00 to 2:30 PM.
Ironically Sasscer Park, the location of this rally, is named after Nelvin Sasscer, an SAPD police officer who was murdered by the Black Panthers.
Eleven speakers will be at this event, to make the case that “none of this is legal” and that we will not let the Trump administration destroy our institutions, way of life or our democracy:
- Dave “DUI” Min – Congressional Representative for California’s 47th District
- Pastor Ivan Pitts – Second Baptist, Santa Ana
- Jessie Lopez – Santa Ana Council Member
- Allyson Damikolas– Trustee, Tustin USD
- Sandra DeAnda – Writer and immigration rights advocate
- Mark Parades- Member AFSCME UDW Local 3930 Orange County
- Kenny Williams- President, Orange County Labor Federation
- Rick Foster, Founder of You Are Safe Here and Human Rights Advocate
- Sadaf Rahmani – Planned Parenthood of Orange & San Bernardino Counties Colonel Allan Dollison – USARET
- Vicente Sarmiento – An Orange County Supervisor whose family runs seedy bars and dance halls and also sues police departments and cities after criminals are killed
The , organized as part of a National Day of Action, will spotlight the devastating impact of recent presidential executive orders and DOGE’s attacks on local public services, including education, healthcare, social security, veterans’ services, and immigrants’ rights.
Organizers are calling for elected officials to take immediate action to protect Orange County communities from the harmful consequences of these policies.
According to the event organizers, “These funding cuts and executive orders are not just abstract issues, they are direct threats to the lives of everyday Orange County residents – threatening to decimate our public schools, drastically reduce access to healthcare, increase financial burdens on elderly and disabled residents, disenfranchise over 75,000 veterans across the county, attacking civil rights by increasing dangerous deportations without due process, creating chaos in key services OC residents rely on, and decreasing public safety by undermining the rule of law.”
DUI Dave, a few labor union muckrakers, and our buddy Vince! Sounds like the usual suspects are turning up for this event! Which means it’ll probably be a huge dud like that other inauguration day protest that nobody turned up to. Don’t get me wrong there’s plenty to criticize with Trump, but these guys haven’t figured out that the circa 2020 playbook of edgy anger and righteous indignation that resonates with bored college kids doesn’t resonate with actual hardworking voters anymore. Time to grow up!
Whether I like them or not, at least some are taking a stance against a 34 count felon, 6x bankrupter of businesses, child/adult SA offender, insurrection instigator, draft dodger, Nepo baby, 78-year-old who is bankrupting the US & tanking the stock market, added millions in golf bills in just 3 whole months, has alienated every single US ally, destroyed needed US agencies that aid & protect US citizens. If that makes me, a non-affiliated Independent who hates all politicians, “Woke,” then I’ll gladly take the childish label & stand for the values & integrity the current dictator & his cult lacks altogether. Signed, a native OC resident, Gen-Xer, daughter of a Vietnam Vet, who most certainly was not a “sucker” or a “loser.” PS Hope your stocks are doing well Art, because those taxes, sorry, tariffs haven’t even started to hurt those who wanted fascism (at least the penguins are laughing).
Well I voted for the Libertarian last year. I’m aghast at the economic disaster unfolding.