_{Thumbnail photo: Nearly 1,000 demonstrators showed up for the No Kings Rally at the Del Norte County Fairgrounds in October. | Photo by Heather Polen}

Three months after the No Kings Rally brought nearly 1,000 demonstrators to their front yard, officials at the Del Norte County Fairgrounds are calling for a review of its First Amendment Expression policy.

At a meeting of the 41st District Agriculture Association Board of Directors on Monday, Board President Kara Miller said she wanted to make sure demonstrators aren’t disturbing businesses or people renting buildings on fairgrounds property. 

Meanwhile, 41st DAA CEO Kim Floyd said she wanted to make sure the fair is protected from liability. She pointed to a confrontation that she said occurred during the No Kings Rally in October between someone who had pulled into the parking lot and a demonstrator.

“When they stand out there, it’s great because they stand out on the sidewalk and they’re in the public area and we’ve designated that area … that is the free speech zone,” Floyd said of the area in front of the main parking lot alongside U.S. 101. “But the issue that is coming up is they’re parking in our public parking lot, and a couple of months ago when they had the No Kings protest, there was a confrontation with another car that came into the parking lot. The concern is if it had gotten out of hand. We were not notified that they were on our property.”

The 41st DAA Board of Directors asked Floyd to place the review of their First Amendment Expression Policy on the agenda for February and proposed having directors John Pritchett and Jeffrey Molnar review it with the district’s legal counsel.

This discussion comes as the Del Norte County Democratic Party is planning a “Stand For Freedom” rally on Jan. 19, Martin Luther King Day. The Democratic Central Committee has rented the floral building at the fairgrounds so there will be an indoor space where people can gather for hot drinks and snacks starting at 9:30 a.m., according to committee chairman Kevin Hendrick.

There will be a short program with speakers at about 10:15 and from about 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. demonstrators will head out to U.S. 101. The floral building will still be open for those who need a restroom or who need to warm up, Hendrick said.

“It’s rain or shine,” he told Redwood Voice Community News. “Bring umbrellas. I have this image of a rainbow of umbrellas.”

Under the policy, the fairgrounds’ “free expression zone” is located both inside and outside the paid gate and are available during its hours of operation. The zone outside the paid gate is also available without charge on a first-come first-served basis.

On Monday, Floyd said that the grassy area at the northern corner of the main parking lot near the intersection of U.S. 101 and Cooper Avenue is the free expression zone.

Miller’s concerns also included parking. She asked if there was a stipulation in the policy that required demonstrators to park in the north parking lot. Upon learning that there was no such stipulation, Miller suggested that perhaps there should be.

“Maybe we should, you know, give them a place to park their cars,” she said. “Let’s all work together. They have that corner, but they don’t cause our business to have a problem, right?”

Floyd also raised concerns about the impact rallies and demonstrations have on Java Hut. Without specifying who “they” are, Floyd said there’s been instances of rude behavior to the employees at the drive-thru coffee shop. 

When asked about an altercation at the No Kings Rally in October, Lisa Cundall, of Del Norte Indivisible, said the confrontation that occurred involved a counter protester threatening to harm protesters.

“It was handled in a peaceful and professional manner with peacekeepers and clergy,” she told Redwood Voice of the altercation.

As for the concerns about Java Hut, Cundall said Del Norte Indivisible wasn’t aware of any complaints of rudeness from the coffee shop during the October rally.

“We had no feedback from Java Hut,” she said. “We know there were counter protesters there.”

Cundall said that she and other demonstrators have received stellar service from Java Hut.

According to an email Floyd sent Hendrick ahead of a rally on April 19, 2025, she had offered the north parking lot to demonstrators. The fairgrounds had been hosting three events that day and expected the main parking lot to be full. Floyd also asked “all parties” to be mindful of the vendors and people attending the events.

“I was told that at the last Free Expression Event, there was screaming of profanity to patrons that were driving onto the fairgrounds,” she told Hendrick. “There will be families with young children on the fairgrounds this weekend.”

According to Hendrick, there were at least five demonstrations in Del Norte County starting with the People’s March ahead of the second inauguration of Donald Trump as president in January. The No Kings Rally in October drew 900 people, he said.

Hendrick said he was unaware of an altercation at the No Kings Rally in October, but at the first No Kings Rally in June there was an incident that prompted him to notify California Highway Patrol Commander Larry Depee. Both rallies were organized by Del Norte Indivisible with the June event drawing roughly 700 people, he said.

“There was a guy in a pickup truck with Trump flags that repeatedly kept swerving toward the crowd and that made people fearful understandably,” he said, adding that most of the demonstrators were on the sidewalk, not fairgrounds property. “And then later there was the same guy in the parking lot that was doing the same thing. People were walking and he was acting like he was going to run them over.”

Pointing out that U.S. 101 and the Del Norte County Fairgrounds is state property, Hendrick said there were witnesses and video of the incident and demonstrators got a license plate number of the pickup truck. While the CHP started building a case, Hendrick said he never heard anything back.

As for the “Stand For Freedom” Rally on Monday, Hendrick said at least 40 people have indicated they would participate based on the Mobilize app and he anticipates that another 40 will show up.

“It’s MLK Day, which is traditionally a day of service, so we’re asking people to bring some food so we can donate it to a local pantry,” he said.