Hundreds of Alaskans Rally in Support of Ukraine in Trump-Putin Protests

Hundreds of Alaskans showed up for a pro-Ukraine rally ahead of the Trump-Putin meeting Friday, and at least 16 events are planned statewide.

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“I can see fascists from my house,” one sign read.

Hundreds of Alaskans showed up for a pro-Ukraine rally ahead of the Donald Trump-Vladimir Putin meeting Friday. At least 16 events are planned statewide, including a “large Ukrainian flag unveiling in Anchorage to protest the presidents and show support for ending the war in Ukraine,” the Alaska Beacon reported Friday.

Hundreds gathered on Thursday to protest in advance of the Trump-Putin summit in Anchorage on Friday, and they were met with cheers and honks.

“Ukrainian flags were everywhere, as was a marching band, a cadre of foreign news correspondents, and a slate of creative signs — some protesting Trump policies unrelated to the summit, while others more specifically criticizing the planned Friday meeting between Trump and Putin,” the Alaskan Daily News reported.

“I can see fascists from my house,” one sign read, in a play on a “Saturday Night Live” spoof of former Gov. Sarah Palin’s now-famous 2008 remark on the proximity of Alaska to Russia.

Photos from r/goodnews via user CorleoneBaloney:

The protests are planned all around the state:

Nicole Collins, who is an organizer with the group Ketchikan Mayday for Democracy, told the Alaska Beacon that their first goal with Thursday’s vigil was to communicate solidarity with Ukraine, and the second was to express their disgust at a war criminal being invited to Alaskan soil.

“First and foremost, our goal is to communicate solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Ukraine, to let them know that we all watched in horror as Ukraine was invaded over three years ago now. Even though we’re on this island in Southeast Alaska, we are members of the human race, and we’re all part of this world, and we want them to know that we see them and we stand with them.”

She added, “Our secondary goal would be to show that we just have this utter disgust in a war criminal stepping foot on our precious Alaskan soil, our U.S. soil, and that we have great concerns over the fact that our president shows every sign of admiration towards this war criminal dictator that’s coming from Russia.”

Presidents Trump and Putin will hold a joint “news conference” after their summit Friday on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. (Neither holds actual news conferences.)

What do you think about the people of Alaska protesting Trump and Putin? Share your thoughts in the comments below.