More than 100 protest COVID-19 closures at Clark County Courthouse

More than 100 people packed in front of the Clark County Courthouse on Friday afternoon to protest closures linked to COVID-19.

The crowd collected behind a row of American flags. Many carried signs, with slogans that included “Freedom is the cure,” “Work not welfare,” and “Let my people go.”

Others carried campaign signs supporting the re-election of President Donald Trump. Across the street, a couple of officers from the Vancouver Police Department monitored the gathering.

Only a handful of the protesters wore masks or gloves. Many brought their children.

State Rep. Vicki Kraft, R-Vancouver, was among the speakers to address the crowd. She took off her mask and jokingly twirled it above her head before she gave her remarks.

“The majority in Olympia are not listening,” Kraft said. “It is the people who ultimately have the authority over their government.”

Kraft had attended a similar rally at the state Capitol on April 19 that drew 2,000 people protesting the governor’s stay-at-home order.

Friday’s Vancouver protest was organized in conjunction with a similar gathering in Spokane, led by Republican State Rep. Matt Shea.

The event overlapped with the tail end of a press conference from Gov. Jay Inslee, who announced earlier in the afternoon that his stay-at-home order would remain in place until at least May 31 and that a plan to reopen the economy would occur over four phases.