Signs of all sorts dotted the crowd at Paepcke Park Saturday March 8 at a rally organized by Carbondale resident Linda Lafferty that drew roughly 350 people. Speakers included Pitkin County Commissioner Greg Poschman, Alan Muñoz of Voces Unidas, and journalists Andy Stone and Annalise Grueter. Residents of the Roaring Fork, Colorado River and Eagle River valleys were present - some angry, some sad and some out of work - but all ready to send various messages to lawmakers from the local level to Washington D.C.
Stone, former editor of the Aspen Times, told the crowd that Donald Trump has declared the press as the enemy of the people. He spoke of news deserts, newspapers owned by billionaires, and recent Trump lawsuits against broadcasting giants ABC and CBS. “Donald Trump sued [ABC] for $15 million because a reporter said [Trump] had been found guilty of rape,” he recalled. “Everyone thought there was no way Trump could win. But ABC settled. They gave 15 million to the Trump Foundation.” (The CBS suit has not been resolved.)
Stone’s solution? “You've got to maintain the free press, the Aspen Daily News, Aspen Public Radio, The Sopris Sun, Sol del Valle, Aspen Journalism, KDNK,” he said. “These are important things. We need to fight for them.” He also encouraged the crowd to vote, to organize. “And reclaim our country, step by step,” he said.
Stone added that Americans must rise up for the rule of law. “Standing against unconstitutional actions is not an act of rebellion,” he said. “It’s an act of fidelity to the ideals of justice.”
