Monroe County councilor Peter Iversen addresses the Hands Off rally on the grounds of the courthouse square. (April 5, 2025)
By The B Square's count, a crowd of at least 300 people gathered on the grounds of the Monroe County courthouse on Saturday at noon, to protest the actions of President Donald Trump's administration in his first few months of office.
It was a "Hands Off" rally, one of several hundred that were supposed to be held across the country.
Light but persistent rain fell. The county was under a flood watch, due to the 5 to 6 inches of rain that had fallen over the last three days.
The lineup of speakers, all Democrats, included current elected officials in city, county, and state government, as well as other local party affiliates and community members.
The list of those who were slated to speak included: Chrissie Geels (vice chair Monroe County Democratic Party); Sydney Zulich (Bloomington city councilmember); Isabel Piedmont-Smith (Bloomington city councilmember); David Henry (Monroe County councilor); Dawn Johnsen (IU professor of law); Peter Iversen (Monroe County councilor); Shelli Yoder (Indiana state senator); Isak Asare (Bloomington city councilmember); Rob Stone (Medicare for All Indiana); Jane Grant (Social Security); Michelle Higgs (Indiana Rural Summit / Organizing Indiana); Anushka Pandey (IU Dems); Josh Montagne (IU Dems); Scott Rogers (HoosLeft); Jenny Noble-Kuchera (MCEA); Claire Cumberland (CWA 4818); Charlotte Zietlow (former city councilmember, county commissioner); Wayne Shepherd (Stonewall Dems).
Photos: 'Hands Off' Rally (Bloomington April 5, 2025)
'Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. (April 5, 2025) Photo credit: David Henry.('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Josh Montagne (IU Dems): "It's crucial that we don't stay silent, because the assault the Trump administration has put our democracy keeps me awake at night. And I'm sure it keeps you awake too. It makes me cry when I'm awake, to see families ripped apart, to see people taken away from their homes, from the communities, the lives that they built, to see people stricken from essential government services because some guy who wasn't elected decides he wants to play dictator." ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025) Anushka Pandey (IU Dems): "My dad came from rural India with nothing to here, because of his education. I'm really lucky to be at Indiana University. But in case you missed it, education funding is being cut, left, right and center at every single level. They're going after low-income areas. They're going after students with disabilities. They're even going after grants for teacher training." ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025) Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson: "You know what's a lot easier than standing out in the rain for two hours? Voting. And voting should be easy for all of the people in Monroe County, And in order to do that, we really do need vote centers. Having vote centers on Election Day means that no matter which center you pick to show up at, you can vote." ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)From left: Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson and state senator Shelli Yoder. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Dawn Johnsen (IU professor of law): "I've been teaching constitutional law at IU Maurer [School of Law] for more than 25 years, and I've also been a legal adviser to three presidents—Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Joe Biden. ... I'm here to say: Yes, absolutely, we are in a constitutional crisis. There can be no doubt, right? President Trump has acted unlawfully in so many unprecedented ways, so many illegal, damaging, despicable acts, so fast and furious. Trump's first 75 days in office has spawned 150 lawsuits." ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Shelli Yoder (state senator): "We've got two weeks left [in his year's legislative session] to make sure that the next biennium budget from the State House reflects your values. Reach out to your circle of influences. Let them know that their voices, their emails, their calls, make a difference. We cannot go silently. Democracy is a full-on sport, full-court press. If they want to take away our rights, we need to let them know that we will not go silently. So hands off our health care, hands off our public school education, and hands off our democracy!" ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Rob Stone (Medicare for All Indiana): "Keep your hands off of caring for each other! Elon Musk was on the Joe Rogan show about a month ago, and he said empathy is the worst problem Western civilization faces—empathy is toxic. ...Pardon my English, but that's fucked up!" ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Isak Asare (Bloomington city councilmember): "Sometimes, in moments like these, it's easy to feel like an ant going up against an elephant. But when ants get together, when ants stand side by side, when ants link arm in arm, when ants are in unity, they can bring down even the largest elephant that there might be. This nation is founded not on the ideals of us being Republicans or Democrats, but on the ideal of us being unified as Americans." ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Isak Asare (Bloomington city councilmember addresses the crowd. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Monroe County councilor Peter Iversen addresses the crowd. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Monroe County councilor Peter Iversen addresses the crowd. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025) Photo credit: Dave Rollo.Peter Iversen (Monroe County councilor): "It's not just the federal government. It's the state government, too. ...They're trying to take away money from local governments here in Monroe County and all across the state. And the first thing that's going to hit is your roads. You're going to see more potholes in your roads." ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)David Henry (Monroe County councilor) addresses the crowd. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)From left: Monroe County Democratic Party chair Samuel Ujdak and Monroe County councilor Peter Iversen. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Bloomington city councilmember Isabel Piedmont-Smith addresses the crowd. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025) Isabel Piedmont-Smith (Bloomington city councilmember): "Instead of a free press, Trump has sued media companies and banned journalists from the White House. Instead of free speech, he has threatened withholding federal funds from universities that talk about diversity, equity and inclusion." ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Sydney Zulich (Bloomington city councilmember) "Good trouble is coming to events like these. Good trouble is withholding your dollars from businesses and organizations that fight against you. Good trouble is standing up against laws that are unjust, because we know that they are. Good trouble is civil disobedience. It's realizing that there may be consequences for standing up, but the consequences for sitting down will always be worse." ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Monroe County Democratic Party vice chair Chrissie Geels addresses the crowd. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)From left: Bloomington city councilmembers Dave Rollo and Andy Ruff. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)Former Bloomington city councilmember and county commissioner Charlotte Zietlow sends a wave to the crowd. ('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off'rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)('Hands Off' rally on the Monroe County courthouse square. April 5, 2025)
