By Keith Murden
The Nugget
The designated “Free Speech Zone” in the center of Dahlonega’s historic square was home to a controversial, but peaceful, protest Saturday.
The local gathering, organized by the Lumpkin County Democratic Party, mirrored other worldwide demonstrations that same day against the actions of U.S. President Donald J. Trump.
Known in America as the “No Kings” protests, there were also gatherings in 20 other countries under the alternative labels “No Dictators” and “No Tyrants.”
The “No Kings” protests were organized by a coalition of progressive organizations, and purport to have been the largest coordinated protests since Trump began his second term in January.
Local Democratic Party Chair Roger Smith told The Nugget that, in his opinion, the protests were “an opportunity for people to stand up and say what’s happening is not right. It is not American. And that’s what you’re seeing here.”
He noted that, aside from a handful of hecklers, the responses of most passersby to the protest ranged from neutral to supportive.
“At least two thirds of the folks who react have been positive. And I think it indicates that [Trump] is losing support in deep red Lumpkin County,” Smith said.
Meanwhile, new Lumpkin County Republican Party Chair J.J. Jorgensen said his party’s decision not to hold an organized counter-protest of their own was intentional.
“I think it was an overwhelming sense that [the Democrats] have every right to peacefully protest. Let them do so. There’s no need in us trying to be there as a counter,” Jorgensen said, noting that the Republicans held a gathering of their own in the very same Free Speech Zone earlier this year.
State rules also only permit one group to reserve the Free Speech Zone at a time, in order to reduce the likelihood of conflict.
As for the complaints of the “No Kings” protestors themselves, Jorgensen said he really didn’t pay close enough attention to the event to offer a rebuttal.
“For the most part, I stayed away,” Jorgensen told The Nugget.
“My father and grandfather both served in the Army, so I was paying way more attention to the parade for the 250th birthday of the Army than I was anything else,” he said.
OVERNIGHT TENSIONS
While the Dahlonega protest ultimately occurred without incident, tensions were running high on social media the night before the gathering.
A series of posts on the Lumpkin County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page generated hundreds of comments and shares.
The first post was a written statement from Sheriff Stacy Jarrard at 8:17 p.m. on Friday, June 13, in which he mentioned the hours of the protest and that the event would be “overseen by the City of Dahlonega.”
“I hope it goes well. If our agency is needed we have a plan for action,” the post concluded.
The next message was a video post from 10:50 p.m. that same night featuring Jarrard and one of his officers, in which the Sheriff emphasized the Democratic Party’s right to hold a peaceful gathering in the center of town.
“The Democratic Party does it, the Republican Party does it, the Independent Party does it … So the people that feel that they want to come out and disturb a peaceful gathering, just know that there will be a law enforcement presence around,” Jarrard said.
PROTEST TIME
When the next morning arrived, law enforcement vehicles from the City of Dahlonega Police, the University of North Georgia Police, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Sheriff’s Office and the Georgia State Patrol could all be seen positioned in various public parking lots around the downtown periphery.
By 9 a.m., the protestors were already in position in the designated Free Speech Zone, located immediately behind the Gold Museum. Some signs were planted in the lawn, while others were held aloft by participants.
The morning proceeded with relative quiet and calm, but as the day wore on and more people packed the square, the interactions between protestors and the public gradually increased in number and volume.
A pair of street evangelists known for regularly sharing the Christian gospel message on the square set up shop on a median directly across from the protestors, and some loud back-and-forth exchanges between the two camps ensued.
One of the protestors paced back and forth across the length of the designated Free Speech Zone shouting various slogans like ‘no king’ and ‘protect your veterans,’ as an onlooker sarcastically mocked her efforts. “Blah, blah, blah,” he repeated back to her.
Meanwhile, the reaction from weekend traffic circling the square was mixed. Many honked their horns in an apparent show of support, or shouted “That’s right!” through a rolled down window as they passed.
Others showed their allegiance to the president instead, waving American flags and shouting out “Trump!” or “MAGA!”
By 3 p.m. in the afternoon some of the demonstrators had begun to peel away, but a determined group of around a dozen or more stayed on until 5 p.m.
CHECKS & BALANCES
The Nugget walked around the Free Speech Zone during the afternoon to try to get a sense of who attended the protest, and why.
Dahlonega resident Forest Hilyer said he was there to stand behind the U.S. Constitution.
“Due process is an important part of how this country works and what makes it as great as it is, regardless of any political affiliation,” Hilyer said.
He claimed that he would also protest if a Democratic president were to behave in the same way as Trump has.
“No matter who it was, from any party up there that was trying to grab power to eliminate checks and balances and due process, I would be standing here with the same sign,” Hilyer continued.
“I don’t understand why every person in the county isn’t standing out here saying ‘This is not okay,’” he added.
Another local resident in attendance, Rebecca Reihm, used her cell phone to communicate her opinion because she is deaf.
“I used to watch the [White House] briefs with a sign language interpreter every day during Biden. On Trump’s first day of office he removed that access to a sign language interpreter,” Reihm stated.
Amy Ray of the legendary folk rock duo Indigo Girls could also be seen at the protest. She said Trump is “not serving all the people.”
Ray is opposed to any proposed cuts to Medicaid and Medicare contained in the “Big, Beautiful Bill” currently making its way through Congress. She also strongly disapproves of the president’s trade policies.
“Tariffs are affecting a county like this more than Silicone Valley,” she claimed.
Carrie Schrader, a dual resident of both Atlanta and Dahlonega, further elaborated on the concept of Trump as king, rather than president.
“The thing I think he has in common with dictators and kings right now is using his executive power and his financial power to dismantle some basic human rights in this country,” Schrader said, specifically citing the rights of immigrants, transsexuals and people of color.
Dahlonega resident Matt Nielsen also showed up to the protest, but insisted he is not a Democrat.
Rather, he considers himself an independent voter with Libertarian tendencies.
“I like the idea of smaller government, and I feel like Trump is abusing his power and growing it in ways that people who claim they like smaller government shouldn’t like,” Nielsen said.
He said he also didn’t appreciate the depiction in the media of all protestors as violent.
“There’s this impression that people just want to loot and cause havoc and chaos. I’ve been here since nine in the morning, and we haven’t been burning flags,” Nielsen said.
“I like to encourage dialogue,” he added. “We’re neighbors. I don’t want to be enemies.”
Bobbi Martin, a local nurse for the last 40 years, said she downloaded and printed out a draft of the “Big, Beautiful Bill” and has been trying to “translate” the health care cuts proposed by Republicans.
“It’s $866 billion in cuts for Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security. Everyone keeps saying it’s just Medicaid, but that’s what I’m trying to explain to people,” she said. “It’s not.”
Martin admitted that Trump’s most ardent supporters will likely not be swayed by her research.
“We’re not going to reach our MAGA’s out here, we just know that. But I know that there are really smart, intelligent Republicans in our community that need the truth,” she said.
Lesley Campbell from Trinity, Fla. was visiting Dahlonega with her family on Saturday and said she is not moved by the protestors.
“They’ve been accusing Republicans of wanting to cut Medicaid for decades, and it’s literally never happened,” she said.
Campbell said she finds Democrats’ view of Trump as a threat to democracy to be highly hypocritical.
“Let’s not forget Kamala Harris: there was no primary held for her. Biden was found unfit to be president, so they threw her up there. Nobody picked her to run for president,” she said.
UNDEMOCRATIC ACTIONS?
Smith said that, in his opinion, the actions Trump has taken since January 20th are “profoundly undemocratic and unconstitutional.”
Smith alleged that Trump has willfully ignored multiple court rulings that have come down against his agenda so far.
“And just yesterday his press secretary said he couldn’t govern with co-equal branches of government. That is the foundation of the American Republic: three co-equal branches,” he said.
Smith also claimed Trump is trying to censor oppositional media.
“We’ve got a president who is threatening to shut down news organizations who report things he doesn’t like, specifically regarding pulling the FCC license for CBS because he didn’t like what 60 Minutes said.”
Smith said the most encouraging thing about the day’s event to him was witnessing the response of the general public.
“I think people are watching what [Trump’s] doing and becoming profoundly uncomfortable with it,” he claimed. “The change in sentiment from the election to now is quite dramatic.”
Finally, Smith praised the efforts of law enforcement to keep the event peaceful.
“The sheriff worked closely with local law-enforcement and DNR to make sure that everyone remained safe,” Smith concluded.