Utah News Dispatch
‘Safety first’: Salt Lake City’s No Kings protest changes its plan
People take part in the “No Kings” protest in Salt Lake City on Saturday, June 14, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)
Organizers of Salt Lake City’s No Kings protest are canceling the march portion of Saturday’s event for safety reasons and plan to hold a longer demonstration at the state Capitol instead.
The group made the decision Tuesday as RSVPs flooded in faster than expected, said Jamie Carter with Salt Lake Indivisible.
“As big as this is getting, and considering, you know, what happened at the last march in the evening, we decided that safety first should probably be our top priority,” Carter said Tuesday.
At Salt Lake City’s No Kings protest in June, innocent bystander Afa Ah Loo was shot and killed by an armed volunteer who fired into a crowd three times, Salt Lake City police said. The volunteer also managed to shoot and wound his intended target, a man carrying a rifle, according to police. Protesters in the crowd of 10,000 ran into buildings and huddled together in the chaos.
Four months later, no one has been charged in the killing of Ah Loo, a fashion designer and father of two from West Valley City. Experts have said Utah’s permissive gun laws may offer legal protection to both the shooter and the man who carried the rifle but didn’t fire it.
Saturday’s gathering will mark the first large-scale demonstration in Salt Lake City since the shooting. It follows other shootings at recent public or political events in Utah, including the killings of three people at a festival in West Valley City in June, and the death of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University in September.
Carter said she’s spoken with people who have mixed emotions about attending the protest.
“Some people were very hesitant, after what happened last time,” Carter said.
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National No Kings organizers cut ties with Utah 50501, the local group behind June’s protest – which did not have a role in planning Saturday’s event, said Carter, also political director for DemCast USA.
Safety volunteers won’t be armed and have participated in de-escalation training led by the local American Civil Liberties Union and Freedom Trainers, Carter said. Organizers are asking attendees to leave weapons at home.
Sign-ups prior to an event typically account for just 20% of actual crowd size, Carter said, and the group received 1,700 as of Tuesday afternoon, suggesting more than 8,000 could attend the event.
That would make for about 500 protesters for every safety volunteer, Carter said, and for a march, “we did not feel that was adequate.”
“It’s a lot more of a controlled environment,” she said of the Capitol. A dance party and performances from two bands and a comedian will follow the rally, instead of a march to the City and County building.
In Washington, D.C., House Speaker Mike Johnson condemned the events scheduled for Saturday across the country as a “hate America rally.”
Carter said the Utah event’s mantra is “‘no one can steal our joy,’ and so we really want to make this a fun community experience.” She expects to see unicorn and dinosaur costumes like many have been wearing in Portland, Oregon as they have protested the presence of National Guard troops and immigration agents in the city.
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Salt Lake City police are coordinating closely with event organizers, said police Sgt. Miles Southworth, “just doing what we can to have that open communication to kind of get an idea of what resources are needed and how we can help ensure this event goes safely.”
He declined to say how many officers are assigned, or whether there will be a larger law enforcement presence than at the deadly June demonstration, but said neighboring departments will be there to help.
The Utah Highway Patrol, which provides Capitol security, will also staff the event, said spokesperson Hillary Koellner. She declined to share details, citing safety.
“Whether they are a protester or counter protester, free speech is protected,” Koellner said. “We encourage peaceful protesting.”
Demonstrations are planned in 11 other cities across Utah, including in St. George, Moab, Kanab, Price and Fillmore.
