Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper

The Spokesman-Review Newspaper The Spokesman-Review

Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
News >  Spokane

About 100 protest Trump’s emergency wall declaration in Spokane

Feb. 18, 2019 Updated Wed., Feb. 20, 2019 at 12:21 p.m.

More than 100 people protested President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency to secure funding for his long-promised border wall on Monday, Feb. 18, 2019, on the Monroe Street Bridge in downtown Spokane. (Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane / Facebook)
More than 100 people protested President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency to secure funding for his long-promised border wall on Monday, Feb. 18, 2019, on the Monroe Street Bridge in downtown Spokane. (Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane / Facebook)

Protestors returned to downtown Spokane on Monday afternoon to denounce President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency to secure funding for his long-promised border wall.

The gathering of more than 100 people on the Monroe Street Bridge was one of many Presidents Day protests across the country.

“I’m here because I’m protesting the fake emergency,” said Akua Lum, a Spokane apartment landlord.

“If it’s like any other government program, it’ll be a $100 billion wall before it’s done,” said Jim Dempsey, a retired construction worker who attended the protest with his wife, Pat, a middle school teacher who belongs to the Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane.

Several protestors said they had taken part in previous Spokane events such as the annual Women’s March, where opposition to Trump and his policies was on full display. On Monday, they lined walkways on both sides of the bridge, holding signs and waving at passing cars.

There was no organized counterprotest, but a few drivers rolled down their windows to chant, “Build that wall!”

Vern Brock, a retiree who lives on the West Plains, said he attended the protest because he believes Trump’s emergency declaration muddies the separation of powers outlined in the Constitution.

“Invoking emergency powers is always a scary thing in any government, and I’d hate to see us going down that path. I could see the next president invoking emergency powers for climate change, and that’s just not how you do it,” Brock said, even though he believes urgent actions must be taken to cool down the planet. “That’s not how our government is designed to run.”

The Spokesman-Review Newspaper

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are not tax deductible, but are predominately used to help meet the local financial requirements needed to receive national matching-grant funds.

Active Person

Subscribe now to get breaking news alerts in your email inbox

Get breaking news delivered to your inbox as it happens.