Hundreds of Alaskans gathered Thursday at a busy Anchorage intersection to protest a planned meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Trump and Putin are set to meet Friday on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.
Protesters of all ages gathered at the intersection of the Seward Highway and Northern Lights Boulevard on Thursday evening, eliciting honks and cheers from drivers during rush hour traffic.
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.
“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.
“Putin won’t stop at Ukraine,” read another sign, alluding to a concern among some Alaskans that Putin would attempt to reassert control over Alaska, which was sold from Russia to the U.S. in 1867.
[When Trump and Putin meet in Anchorage, Alaska’s Ukrainians will be watching closely]
The protest Thursday was organized and advertised by a coalition of progressive groups, which are also planning a series of protests Friday. Meanwhile, the Alaska GOP is planning a rally in support of Trump at the same intersection midday Friday.
