I went to two protests on the Big Island, one in the morning in Waimea, one in the afternoon in Kona. Turnout was huge, given these are fairly small towns. Noticeably bigger than for Hands Off, which had bigger crowds than expected.
The news from Minnesota had just broken, but one woman made a sign and brought it to the protest. There were audible gasps when people saw it.
The local paper reported that 800 people showed up in Waimea for HandsOff. Not bad for a town of 9000. There were a lot more people there for NoKings. I would guess at least 1,000.
One guy had a sign that looked like a Tesla cybertruck on fire.
There were women dressed up old fashioned costumes.
Several people had signs that said, “No kings, more queens” or similar slogans.
Love this sign:
“FDT” has become a pretty popular shorthand here.
One of my favorite signs. He does have very tiny hands.
There was a drone overhead at both protests. I’m not sure if it belonged to a protester or to the cops. Some people were nervous about being spied on.
Another sign I loved:
Parking was pretty tight in Kona. There were people parked in the Lowe’s parking lot up the street, as well as along the side streets a half mile away. Some people gave up on parking and just drove up and down the street, waving signs out their car windows and honking their horns.
Troof.
A couple wearing “Big Island for Palestine” shirts.
There were a lot of #NoKings signs making an exception for Hawaiian royalty.
I love this one: “This is my resisting bitch face.”
A 3D sign. Hoping the great fall comes soon.
This guy must have paid good money to make this sign.
This woman is smiling at my sign (top photo). My new sign was much more popular than my last one. A lot of people took photos, and even people driving by yelled, “I love your sign” and waved so energetically that other protesters though they were friends of mine. Nope, total strangers.
Another sign in support of Hawaiian sovereignty.
Striking sign with (presumably fake) jewels.
I like the sign in the background. “A woman’s place is in the rebellion.”
The Lorax made an appearance.
Another sign supporting Hawaiian monarchs only.
I like the taco theme. I think my next sign will be taco-related.
Her handwriting is a lot better than mine.
Loved this one.
This guy stopped me to inform me that I misspelled “perade” on my sign. 😂
One of my favorites. Also, check out the Melania-inspired t-shirt at right. “I really do care, do u?”
Speaking of Melania…
Another taco sign.
The only explanation for Trump’s re-election.
Go Canada!
I did not see any Trump supporters protesting at either event. Though some drove by. One elderly man on a scooter yelled “long live Trump” as he rode by. And one guy drove past with his huge Trump/Vance flags on his huge truck. There was also a cybertruck that drove by. Dunno if he was making a statement or just passing through.
