Protesters gather in downtown Wichita as part of nationwide May Day rallies
Several dozen people gathered Thursday at Douglas and Broadway in downtown Wichita to protest recent moves by the Trump Administration.
Similar groups have been protesting in Wichita on Saturdays and Mondays each week, but the Thursday protest was one of numerous rallies organized across the country on May Day, which commemorates the struggles and gains of the labor movement, particularly the fight for an eight-hour workday.
Hannah Johns was standing along Douglas waving and raising her sign as traffic honked. The 76-year-old said she drove 80 miles from Elk County to protest attempts to bypass immigration courts and chip away at due process.
“I am very concerned about people being taken away who are American citizens,” Johns said.
Johns said this protest is the latest in a long history of personal defiance, describing herself as a hippie from the 60s.
Across the street in another part of the crowd was a 72-year-old United States Air Force veteran. The Wichita man, who wished to not be named, said he was protesting because he said President Trump is “breaking the constitution.”
“It’s obvious that he [Trump] and those that back him are attempting to change the whole government, and that wasn’t what he was elected to do,” hen said. “He was actually elected to uphold the laws of the U.S.”
The veteran was also concerned with due process.
“Everybody in the U.S. has the right to due process, whether they’re a citizen or even an illegal immigrant,” the man said.
Emily Behlmann echoed Johns and the veteran’s sentiment on due process. The 41-year-old was protesting along Broadway in front of the Ruffin Building.
“There’s a lot of things (she was protesting), but probably the biggest one is the lack of due process that we’re seeing from the Trump Administration in the way that they’re deporting migrants without them having their day in court,” Behlmann said.
This story was originally published May 1, 2025 at 4:31 PM.