Indianapolis streets filled with protests and marches as 'No Kings' and Indy Pride collide

Thousands of people took to the streets of Indianapolis Saturday as protests and pride collided.  The annual Indy Pride celebration and the ‘No Kings’ protest were held back to back and people showed up.

Attendees with signs, costumes, and megaphones at both events chanted “This is what democracy looks like”.

Indy Pride is celebrating 30 years in Indianapolis. The city was also one of roughly 2,000 across the country to mark ‘No Kings Day’ day with protests planned in response to the Trump administration’s military parade in Washington, D.C. 

But Indiana 50501 Organizer Scott Johnson said the movement is bigger than that. “This is a generalized protest that is around the idea that what is going on in America today is wrong,” he said.

Johnson, who started by marching in Indy Pride before heading to the statehouse, said the combination of both was important. 

"Pride is celebrating this particular avenue of American rights," he said. "50501 is about all the rest of it."

Thousands filled the south lawn of the Indiana Statehouse and marched around the building for hours, even after it began to rain heavily. People held signs that expressed frustration about a wide range of issues, from immigration enforcement to trans rights.

Michelle Eckert is an Indianapolis resident and held a sign with a picture of Smokey Bear that read "Only you can prevent fascism." She said her son had been laid off from the Forest Service as part of federal cuts. 

"We need to make sure our public lands are safe and secure, we need to make sure that our LGBTQ community is safe and secure," she said. "Right now we're just not seeing that from the administration." 

Like many protestors, Eckert said she was emotional seeing the size of the turnout downtown.

"I'm so proud of this community and everybody coming together," she said. 

At the Indianapolis LGBTQ celebration, Miss Indy Pride Aura Aurora summed up what the combination of both events today meant to her.  “No kings, only Queens.”

The pride celebration comes as efforts to roll back rights and access to things like gender affirming care have intensified at both the state and federal levels.

Activist Deonyae-Dior Valentina was one of many who pulled double duty and attended both events. She said the day of the protest is critical amid attacks on basic human rights. “Pride started as a protest, pride started as an act of resistance," she said. "We're happy that we get to lead that movement, but we're sad that it has to be that way again."

Like others, Valentina said she was happy with the number of people who showed up on Saturday. 

"The number of people we have out on the Ave really says something," she said. "We are not going anywhere, and right now we need to be more visible than ever."