The Inland Northwest has a jam-packed schedule of events on Saturday, including the Pride parade and subsequent celebration in Riverfront Park, the anti-Trump "No Kings" protests in Spokane and Coeur d'Alene, Jesus Fest on Garland (with guest pastor Sean Feucht) and more.
A quick rundown of events on Saturday, June 14:
Spokane Pride Parade: Starts at noon in downtown near Riverfront Park, and ends at the park.
Pride Festival: 1 to 9 pm in the park. At 3 pm in the Lilac Bowl, Spokane Pride is hosting a Stonewall Rally with inspirational LGBTQ+ speakers.
No Kings Rally, Spokane: "In America, we don't do kings," is the idea behind this anti-Trump rally, organized in part by Spokane Indivisible. Organizers have been coordinating with Spokane Pride to ensure the event doesn't overtake the Pride festival. The gathering is planned at 4 pm at the Red Wagon at Riverfront Park, separate from the Pride events.
No Kings Rally, Coeur d'Alene: Scheduled from noon to 3 pm at the intersection of U.S. Route 95 and Appleway Avenue.
Jesus Fest: "To lift Jesus high for all to see his worth and glory," reads the poster for this event at 802 W. Garland Ave. from 3 to 6 pm. "Join us as we celebrate Spokane's true king," a promo video for the evangelical event says, noting there will be food and kids activities. While the event registration tries to tease you into coming with a promise of unnamed excellent speakers, Sean Feucht, who sued the city of Spokane for emotional distress over the City Council's reaction to one of his previous events, has confirmed on his website he'll be in attendance.
SPOKANE PRIDE & NO KINGS
Following the June 11 protests against the detention of two immigrants in Spokane and against larger deportation activities across the country, several community organizations have decided to no longer attend either the Pride parade or set up their booths in the park.
Wednesday's protests saw more than 30 people get arrested after law enforcement officers deployed crowd control measures including smoke canisters and pepper balls and other more serious devices called bean bags and foam batons.
Several organizations concerned that the No Kings rallies or counter protesters to Pride itself could result in a similar clash with law enforcement announced they would not be attending Pride.
Spokane Regional Health District, which has illuminated its building in rainbow colors to show support during Pride, decided on Thursday to cancel its plans to host a booth in the park.
"We’re absolutely disappointed in not being able to participate. We have to put the focus on the safety of our employees," says Kelli Hawkins, public information officer for the health district. "It has nothing to do with Pride or what we’re celebrating during Pride. It’s really about the events surrounding Pride this weekend."
Nuestras Raíces and Latinos Unidos en Acción Alianza or LUNAA posted on Instagram Friday that they would no longer be tabling at Pride on Saturday either, due to safety concerns.
"This decision was not made lightly, as LUNA Alianza (LUNAA) has proudly participated in Pride events in previous years, standing as a beacon of support and solidarity for the Latine queer community," the post states. "Our priority remains the safety and well-being of our community members. We will continue to advocate for a future where everyone can celebrate their identity without fear."
Spokane Pride posted to its Facebook page asking people to still please plan to attend on Saturday, and assuring the community that their team has a safety plan in place — including close collaboration with Spokane's police and fire departments and two ambulances on site.
As of Friday afternoon, Spokane Pride Executive Director Matt Danielson tells the Inlander that less than 10 organizations have dropped out of Saturday's Pride parade and following celebration in the park.
"We don't necessarily know why people pull out, we don't ask them. So, you know, somebody could have broken a leg or whatever," Danielson says. "I think some people had security concerns and other people saw it as overly political."
The No Kings rallies, which are planned all across the country, coincide with Flag Day and President Donald Trump's birthday.
Right-wing Facebook groups in North Idaho, whose members plan to counter protest the No Kings events, shared various posts this week warning their members not to shoot someone to protect property, and to practice trigger and barrel discipline so no one accidentally gets shot. In other words, the potential for tense interactions exists, and it appears some Inland Northwest community members plan to attend these events and open carry firearms.
RIGHTS TO PEACEFULLY ASSEMBLE
Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels says people should feel free to "protest away."
"This community has a pretty long history of protests that go off without a problem," Nowels says.
However, he wants people who plan to peacefully protest to be aware that there may be people who also attend these events and commit crimes. If criminal activity starts happening, a gathering may be ruled an unlawful assembly, and officers may order people to leave, he says.
"If police give a dispersal order, cooperate with us," Nowels says. "I understand that emotions get high when you're there to protest and address things you believe are egregious. But when things are declared an unlawful assembly and there is a dispersal order, it’s just so helpful for us for folks to comply. It’s safer for them, and for the folks around these events."
If people disagree with a dispersal order, Nowels says he understands, but he encourages people to take the issue up with his office — afterwards — not in the moment.
The ACLU of Washington, meanwhile, has strongly condemned Spokane's response to the protests on Wednesday, noting that law enforcement's decisions can have a chilling effect on free speech. In an emailed statement, Jazmyn Clark, the smart justice policy program director for the ACLU of Washington, said:
“We condemn the actions by law enforcement at Wednesday’s protest of unjust immigration enforcement policies in Spokane. Whether it was smoke grenades, pepper balls, or other so called 'less-lethal' weapons, the effect is the same: these tactics escalate conflict, chill free speech, and inflict real harm. Protesters have a clear constitutional right to gather and publicly criticize government action. The use of chemical agents, impact munitions, and aggressive tactics against largely peaceful protestors is not only dangerous, it undermines public trust and suppresses dissent. Police should be protecting rights, not relying on force or inciting fear and chaos. We stand in solidarity with protesters and asylum seekers who are advocating for fair treatment, dignity, and safety. We call for full transparency from Spokane officials, including the release of bodycam footage, use-of-force reports and any other reviews of police misconduct at the protest.”
Ahead of this weekend's planned protests, the ACLU of Washington also sent a letter to Mayor Lisa Brown and city officials calling for "restraint, transparency, and the protection of protesters’ constitutional rights."
"While law enforcement has the authority to maintain public safety, that responsibility must be balanced with the constitutional rights to free speech, assembly, and dissent," the letter states. "The tactics used during the June 11 protest — including chemical agents and less-lethal munitions deployed against largely peaceful demonstrators — raise serious concerns about the proportionality and necessity of such force. The use of crowd-control weapons, especially in response to civil disobedience, must be tightly controlled, transparent, and in line with constitutional protections and best practices."
Find the full letter here.
Brown and Spokane Police Chief Kevin Hall announced Friday afternoon that they have asked the city's Office of the Police Ombuds to conduct an independent review of the actions taken by law enforcement on Wednesday. They've asked the office to review all relevant sections of the Spokane Police Department’s policy, any apparent or actual departures from policy, as well as command operations and decisions.
“Professionalism, integrity and compassion are the core tenets of the Spokane Police Department," Hall says in a press release. "Asking for an independent review is a way for our department to build trust with the community we serve. It also provides as an opportunity to practice continued learning and improvement, which we believe deeply in."
Less than two hours later, Hall sent another press release announcing that he learned after Wednesday evening's press conference that Spokane Police officers had deployed so-called "less-lethal" rounds, though he'd initially only heard they used smoke and pepper balls.
"As part of our ongoing after-action review, I have learned that some Spokane Police Department officers did deploy foam projectiles and bean bags," Hall says in the 4 pm press release. "I want to be clear — these are classified as less-lethal tools and are not rubber bullets.
"From the information we currently have, these tools were used in response to assaultive behavior," Hall continues. "We are still reviewing the full context of these interactions, and unless new details come to light, the actions taken appear to align with our use-of-force guidelines."
POTENTIAL FOR CROWD CONTROL MEASURES
After Wednesday's protests resulted in the use of crowd control measures and less-lethal rounds, here are some details on why/when those may be used, according to Spokane law enforcement officials:
Spokane County Sheriff's Corporal Mark Gregory, a spokesman for the office, says that smoke and pepper balls (which release a cloud of pepper spray dust) were deployed multiple times on Wednesday, in part due to illegal behavior by a few protesters, and then the failure of people to leave the area.
Specifically, he says that after people vandalized a bus with spray paint and slashed tires on another vehicle, the protest near a building on Cataldo Avenue being used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement was declared an unlawful assembly. For more than an hour, officers and deputies told protestors they needed to leave. Gregory says the smoke and pepper balls were used to try to clear the area, as people inside the building were still unable to leave due to the crowd.
Gregory points to RCW 9A.84.020, a misdemeanor statute, which states that a person is guilty of a failure to disperse if "he or she congregates with a group of three or more other persons and there are acts of conduct within that group which create a substantial risk of causing injury to any person, or substantial harm to property" and they do not leave "when ordered to do so by a peace officer or other public servant engaged in enforcing or executing the law."
Preventing people from leaving a building or surrounding their vehicle to prevent them from moving can be considered unlawful imprisonment, a felony which two protesters were charged with Wednesday.
While the sheriff's office does not use the term "tear gas," Gregory says deputies did not deploy CS or CN gas, which are sometimes referred to as tear gas.
Smoke alone can irritate the lungs and eyes, he says, and it's possible those who felt stronger effects breathed in some of the pepper ball material known as OC (oleoresin capsicum), which can also cause tears and a burning sensation. ♦
Inlander reporters Madison Pearson and Colton Rasanen contributed to this report.
Editor's Note: This story was updated Saturday morning, June 14, to reflect the time and location of the No Kings protest in Spokane will be only at the Red Wagon.
