Corvallis, Albany join nationwide anti-Trump protests. Again.

Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Hundreds once again rallied outside the Benton County Courthouse in Corvallis, while a thinner crowd took to the streets in Albany, to voice their displeasure with the Trump administration. The demonstrators, young and old and waving signs with phrases like "No Kings" and "Stop Deportations," joined scores of rallies planned across the country Saturday, April 19. All were loosely strung together under the banner of the so-called 50501 Movement.

Corvallis resident Dan McKenzie sits in a camping chair holding an American flag purposely hung upside down with the words "Not my President" printed on the Red ad White Stripes. McKenzie is just one of hundreds of protesters who filed the sidewalks in front of the Benton County Courthouse on Saturday afternoon. The name stands for 50 protests, 50 states and one movement.



The mass demonstration aims to push back against what organizers call the administration's executive overreach, as reported by Axios . The League of Women Voters in Corvallis also helped coordinate the rallies locally. People are also reading.

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” But for protesters in the mid-Willamette Valley this weekend, there was no single animating issue. A white sign with red writing, with the words "Tyranny begins where law ends," is held with an American flag as the crowd grows filling the sidewalks and spilling into the streets during Saturday's nationwide protests. "What doesn't bring out here today?" said Corvallis resident Niki Hunter when asked about her attendance at Saturday's Corvallis demonstration amid chants and supportive honks from passing vehicles.

Many pointed to concerns about deportations, the targeting of international students, and what they see as an erosion of civil rights under the current administration. They're similar issues cited at the nationwide “Hands Off” protests organized by progressive activist groups earlier this month . Those rallies drew thousands to the streets to protest President Trump’s actions since taking office a second time, including the firing of thousands of federal workers through the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, headed by billionaire Elon Musk.

In the weeks since that nationwide demonstration, the Trump administration has dug itself deeper in a fight with federal courts over the fate of a wrongfully deported 29-year-old Salvadoran man and has shocked the global economy by launching — and then pausing in part — sweeping rounds of tariffs . Carole Sumner of Corvallis walks along the busy sidewalks Saturday, carrying a "Dethrone Trump" handmade sign. The administration also has canceled visas for more than 1,000 international students at universities across the country, leaving college officials grappling to respond and students fearful of deportation.

Those latter moves have hit close to home in Corvallis, where 13 international students at Oregon State University saw their visas revoked earlier this month. Now one of the international students, Aaron Ortega Gonzalez, is suing the Trump administration . His lawyers have their first hearing in a Eugene federal court on Monday.

Brady Shields, one of many OSU students at the Corvallis rally, said the administration was attacking scientists, referencing Ortega Gonzalez and his research on ranchland restoration. Marisabel Gouverneur, an 81-year-old retired clinician, also worried about the canceled visas for international students. "These are the future leaders," she said.

Many spoke broadly about what they see as the administration pushing against legal boundaries. Among them was Carol Sumner, a Corvallis resident. "What is going on with Trump is not constitutional and is not good for our country," she said.

Claire Brown, a trans woman from Philomath who also attended the April 5 rally, spoke in more personal terms. "I'm protesting for everyone's rights and my right to exist," Brown said. Corvallis and mid-Willamette Valley community members fill several blocks in front of the Benton County Courthouse as a second round of nationwide protests are held across the United States on Saturday afternoon.

On the other side of the Willamette River, a thinner crowd of demonstrators lined Southwest Lyon Street between Fifth and Third avenues. Demonstrators included City Councilor Michael Thomson. He said he wanted people in Albany to know folks are frustrated and angry about what's happening at the federal level, specifically citing what he said was "daily confusion" in the education realm.

"It's not a good way to run anything" he said, referencing President Trump. David Pinyerd, who attended Albany's April 5 demonstration, brought along a homemade piñata shaped like a king's crown Saturday. He offered fellow protesters lining the sidewalks a chance to take a swing.

He explained it was a sequel to the CyberTruck themed piñata he brought at the last demonstration. For 58-year-old Albany resident Dave Fleetwood, Saturday marked his first-ever protest. "I just felt like, if I'm ever going to do it, now is the time," Fleetwood said.

"This is probably the worst I feel it will ever get in this country," he added. Most protesters who talked to Mid-Valley Media on Saturday were pessimistic about making connections with Trump supporters. Sean White, a 63-year-old Corvallis resident and a registered Democrat, said he doesn't know where to start the conservation.

In his opinion, he said, Trump supporters have already made up their minds, so he's trying to reach folks on the fence. Corvallis resident Hunter said she's tried to explain herself to Trump supporters for years. "And they haven't heard it," she said.

When asked how he would explain to a Trump supporter why he attended Saturday's demonstration, Fleetwood in Albany said he's had a lot of friends who support the president. They don't talk anymore. "I've basically given up on that," he said.

Staff photographer Jess Hume-Pantuso contributed to this article. Related stories: Mad as hell: Corvallis, Albany join nationwide anti-Trump protests Jess Hume-Pantuso OSU international student sues Trump administration over canceled visa Hans Boyle More Corvallis news More Albany news Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Reporter Author email {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

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