Indivisible Bemidji Plans Third No Kings Protest for March 28

Indivisible Bemidji is organizing its third "No Kings" protest for March 28, building on a series of local demonstrations that have drawn significant crowds even under extraordinary circumstances. The group's most recent rally drew around 1,000 people lining Bemidji Avenue from Erbert & Gerbert's to the Northwest Indian Community Development Center for a two-hour peaceful demonstration, despite Minnesota officials asking residents that same morning to stay away from "No Kings" events after two state legislators were targeted and shot at their homes.

That official advisory did not stop the turnout. Minnesota Auditor Julie Blaha had been slated to speak at the Bemidji event but canceled following the shootings in the Twin Cities area. The rally, held from 1 to 3 p.m. at the NWICDC, was the fourth Indivisible Bemidji rally since April. Organizers felt the event had a positive turnout and should lead to similar events in the future.

The March 28 protest will be part of a coordinated national day of action. Indivisible, the progressive coalition that organizes "No Kings," has described it as potentially "the largest day of protest in U.S. history," with the stated goal of urging people to "rise up nonviolently against the Trump administration's ongoing brutality and abuses of power, including the latest escalation in Minnesota." The organization's interactive No Kings Map already shows hundreds of planned events, while other estimates put the nationwide total at 3,000 events across the country.

In the Twin Cities, March 28 will serve as the culmination of three separate marches, each set to begin at noon before converging on the Minnesota State Capitol. One march will kick off at Harriet Island Regional Park, with a sound truck leading a 1.5-mile route north to the Capitol. A second will start at St. Paul College and feature local music performers. A third will begin at Western Sculpture Park, roughly half a mile from the Capitol.

The statewide event has drawn a substantial roster of confirmed speakers, including Attorney General Keith Ellison, Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler, SEIU President April Verrett, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten, actor and activist Jane Fonda, and singer-songwriter Maggie Rogers. Indivisible co-founders Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin are also scheduled to appear, along with MN-ACLU's Deepender Singh Mayell, COPAL's Carolina Ortiz, and Public Citizen's Robert Weissman. Indivisible says additional speakers will be announced as they are confirmed.

Indivisible's website also links to "Know Your Rights," "Protest Rights and Safety Practices," and "Eyes on ICE: Document and Record" trainings, and includes references to Alex Pretti and Renee Good, who were shot and killed by federal agents during Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis.