Reader photos: 500 attend ‘Standing in Solidarity’ event hosted by AC Democratic Party

 

Organizers said they expected about 70 people. Instead, roughly 500 people showed up.

It was the “Standing in Solidarity” event hosted by the Anderson County Democratic Party at Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church on Saturday, January 21.

The purpose was to show support with the worldwide protests of President Donald Trump, said Scott Julius of the Anderson County Democratic Party. He said there were tables from 20 different progressive organizations at the January 21 event.

Several readers have sent photos from the event. Here are some of them.

Pat Fain, editor of the Anderson County Democratic Party newsletter, said the church’s social hall was packed that Saturday, the day after Trump’s inauguration, and organizers had live streaming coverage of the Woman’s March on Washington, which she said included many Anderson County Democrats.

Besides Anderson County, there were also people at the Oak Ridge event from Campbell, Knox, and Roane counties, Fain said.

“Countless people expressed their appreciation to us for holding it, and many said they have felt so much despair and isolation since the election,” Fain said.

The election has been divisive, even in Oak Ridge. Many residents have celebrated the election of Trump, or at least called for giving the new president a chance. There was a Trump campaign office in Oak Ridge, and some residents drove to Washington, D.C., for his inauguration. But others have been troubled by his election, and they are worried about what actions his administration might take.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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