Dawn Koch attended a sign-making event in Batesville on Oct. 6, 2025, to prepare for this weekend’s No Kings protest. Photos by Noelle Maxwell for Indiana Capital Chronicle.

By Noelle Maxwell
Indiana Capital Chronicle

INDIANAPOLIS — Since Jan. 20, organizations such as No Kings and 50501 have mobilized, holding regular protests against the second Trump administration.

But big cities like Indianapolis and Fort Wayne aren’t the only communities where Hoosiers are exercising their First Amendment rights. People are gathering in Columbus, Batesville, Oldenburg, Franklin, Decatur and other small cities, towns and counties.

This Saturday, Oct. 18 will once again bring a cascade of events around the state for the latest coordinated event. About 40 No Kings protests are planned for Indiana, from Albion to Vincennes.

“I feel like a lot of people” who lean left, “and live somewhere like this, they may feel alone,” said Columbus resident Raven Stanton.

Stanton has organized several protests across Indiana and co-founded Rise Up Columbus. While she’s now considered a seasoned organizer, she didn’t get started until January.

Hollie Payton, co-founder of Decatur County-based RISE for Justice echoed similar sentiments.

Attorney and Indiana House District 55 Democratic candidate Victoria Martz has attended as many protests as possible. She got involved this spring after contacting another organizer in Decatur County, asking if she could speak at their protest.

The Oldenburg Sisters of Saint Francis have participated in local and national protests, including the June 28 Sisters Speak Out protest in Washington D.C. Sister Noella Poinsette also attended a protest at Camp Atterbury.

Poinsette explained the Sisters’ involvement – “Saint Francis was all about the poor, just like Jesus. In the gospel – well, the gospel and the Old Testament, even – God says to care for the orphan, the widow and the stranger. Jesus was all about including everyone.”

The Sisters value justice and individual dignity. Participating in protests is how they speak out for those who can’t.

Rural protests don’t draw the same numbers as those at the Statehouse. For instance, a No Kings rally in May drew more than 3,000 to the state’s capital. Some of the other protests draw dozens to more than a hundred.

Martz described people who drive past protests in small communities as mostly positive, “they’re honking their horns, doing like a cheering fist or waving, things that show they’re happy to see this going on.”

But there are some people “who drive by and they’re throwing up the middle finger or yelling ‘Trump won.’ Nobody said he didn’t win. We’re just saying we don’t like authoritarianism.”

While helping organize a protest in Batesville, Martz was responsible for coordinating with local law enforcement. That communication paid off because at this protest, there was an incident. Martz and her group were walking from downtown Batesville to another area to listen to a speaker. While walking, a truck with two large Trump flags kept driving ahead of the group. The driver was yelling at protestors.

The group approached an intersection and the truck pulled up to the stop sign. The group had previously informed the police chief they wouldn’t obstruct traffic. Organizers reminded protestors to let traffic pass. The truck wouldn’t move, even as other cars approached and waited.

“We were not going to cross the street,” Martz said, “because I was afraid of what could happen if we crossed in front of this truck that already made it clear he wasn’t liking what we’re there to stand for.”

Batesville residents create bracelets to hand out at upcoming No Kings protests on Monday, Oct. 6.

The truck began slowly rolling through the intersection, the driver still yelling at the group. Two protestors approached, Martz said, yelling back, while she reminded others to remain on the sidewalk.

“As I’m doing that,” she recounts, “a white truck pulls up – facing the opposite direction. It flips on its lights and it’s the police chief. He rolled down his window,” telling the truck’s driver he was blocking traffic.

“He made the truck move,” Martz said, “and de-escalated the situation alongside me.”

The group was able to cross and listen to their speaker. The moment stood out, said Martz, because it showed everybody, “your community, while it might not be a straight Democratic community, a good community can have people of all political identities and backgrounds who stand behind each other.”

In Greensburg, Payton encountered locals and people from nearby communities at protests.

For the Sisters of Saint Francis, reactions have been positive.

Beyond protesting, the Sisters of Saint Francis have displayed banners on their front lawn since 2019, including a Black Lives Matter banner. Another time the banner welcomed refugees and immigrants.

“Just because we live in an area represented by Republicans doesn’t mean everybody out here is a Republican,” Martz added.

She estimated approximately 40% of District 55 and Batesville vote independent, rather than a straight Democrat or Republican ticket.

General Election turnout figures from 2024 show many voters in the following rural and suburban Indiana counties are not voting straight-ticket.

Besides raising awareness many groups hold collection drives at protests to give back. Stanton collects food and hygiene products at her protests. Martz and her fellow organizers have tried to include food drives at every protest, especially as programs like SNAP are cut.

Paraphrasing activist and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, she added, “silence only benefits the oppressor,” Poinsette said. “That was the problem in World War II – people stood by and did nothing.”