‘No Kings' organizers in Georgia want peaceful protests but are armed with deescalation tactics
"No Kings" organizers are expecting a large crowd for a protest outside the Georgia Capitol they are working hard to keep peaceful Saturday. Pictured is a 2023 protest over abortion rights at the same location. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder
Five years ago, an Atlanta protest that began peacefully ended in chaos with burning police cars and tear gas canisters.
With mass protests over the Trump administration's policies set to take place around the country Saturday, Georgia's leaders say they will be prepared if violent elements overtake peaceful protests. Around two dozen protests are scheduled across Georgia with hundreds across the country.
But organizers of the planned 'No Kings' event in Atlanta say they've taken every step to ensure a morning of peaceful demonstration.
'This is a permitted rally,' said Laura Judge, an activist with the Indivisible Georgia Coalition, one of the main organizers of the Atlanta event. 'We went and we talked with local officials and law enforcement to make sure that this is a safe and permitted, peaceful rally. But, you know, we went above and beyond to ensure that there is safety and de-escalation.'
Judge said that means over 100 volunteers, including 28 medics and 37 marshals trained in de-escalation, conflict prevention and crowd safety techniques. Medics will be specifically trained to assist older attendees and with disabilities, and the staff will include a law enforcement liaison to assist with communicating with police.
Georgia's top leaders have warned against violent escalations. Gov. Brian Kemp vowed 'heavy accountability,' and Attorney General Chris Carr issued a statement threatening to charge offenders with domestic terrorism, which comes with a prison sentence of up to 35 years.
'Our attorney general just put a statement out about how protests should look,' Judge said. 'And while we're committed and we want all our attendees to be peaceful and use their First Amendment rights, we don't want anyone having that threat of being arrested or being detained when we have done everything, we have checked all the boxes to do what is right using our First Amendment.'
Organizers of Columbus' event recommended an unusual response in case of unexpected behavior.
'In the rare event that individuals outside our organization come to the event and behave in ways that are contrary to our peaceful values, we strongly encourage attendees to sit, hold hands, and listen to to instructions from our trained de-escalators,' reads a post from Indivisible Columbus on social media. 'We are 100% committed to and united in peace.'
Speaking at a virtual meeting for nationwide participants Thursday, Indivisible co-founder Ezra Levin called for spirited but peaceful protests, saying that violence would play into the hands of their political opponents.
'When some bad actors engage in property destruction or violence, the Trump team says, 'see, there, now we need to escalate further,'' he said. 'And that's Trump's plan, rinse and repeat. It's straight from the authoritarian playbook.'
Britt Jacovich, deputy communications director at the liberal MoveOn advocacy group, echoed Levin's sentiments.
'Trump wants chaos on camera, and so we shouldn't give him any footage to use,' she said. 'We win by showing the truth. We are joyful, proud, nonviolent, in every corner of the country.'
Judge said problems caused by outside agitators are always a concern for protesters, but volunteers have been trained to deal with potential criminal elements.
'I believe it's important that at least the organizers and the volunteers are all on the same page knowing who we go to and who we need to work with when things are escalating like that so that we're not branded as these agitators,' she said. 'Because that is not the purpose, our purpose is to show the power belongs to the people and we're allowed to speak up and we should not just automatically be branded as agitators or instigators.'
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