Anti-LGBTQ group, counterprotesters descend on Seattle City Hall over response to Cal Anderson rally

Dozens of anti-LGBTQ demonstrators and counterprotesters faced off at Seattle City Hall on Tuesday as both sides scrutinized Mayor Bruce Harrell’s handling of a Capitol Hill protest over the weekend.

Tuesday’s event saw several arrests as skirmishes between demonstrators with Mayday USA, a Christian fundamentalist group advocating against trans rights, and pro-LGBTQ activists clashed from either side of a police barricade.

At one point, the commotion prompted several street closures in downtown Seattle.

Mayday USA previously held a rally inspired by the right-wing grassroots movement #DontMessWithOurKids in Cal Anderson Park on Saturday. It was one leg of a five-city tour.

Counterprotesters clashed with police Saturday, leading to the arrests of 23 people, most of whom have been charged with assault and obstruction. One juvenile was arrested for obstruction and then released.

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In a statement following Saturday’s protest, Harrell characterized the event as a “far-right rally” intending to “to provoke a reaction by promoting beliefs that are inherently opposed to our city’s values, in the heart of Seattle’s most prominent LGBTQ+ neighborhood.”

Mayday USA has rebuked the Mayor’s statement, and organized Tuesday’s “Rattle in Seattle” event to decry Harrell’s “false accusation and attempts to limit the freedom of Christian worship.”

“We are calling on the mayor to retract his statement, apologize, or resign,” the group said in a post on Instagram.

According to The Seattle Times, Folake Kellog, a Wenatchee-based pastor and spokesperson for Mayday USA, said the group requested to hold the rally at Victor Steinbrueck Park but the city denied its request.

Harrell’s office has stated that Mayday requested a permit for a street location on 1st and 2nd Avenue, not Victor Steinbrueck Park. A permit for a street closure was denied by the city’s Special Events Office, and a staffer shared a list of available parks.

“Given that it was available and met the size/logistic needs available for the event, it was granted,” Harrell’s spokesperson Callie Craighhead said in an email statement. “This is consistent with free speech requirements under the First Amendment.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.