SEATTLE—What started as a peaceful rally by the Christian grassroots movement DontMessWithOurKids at Cal Anderson Park on Saturday, May 24, 2025, quickly turned into hours of violent clashes testing the faith of churchgoers, and the resolve of Seattle police, counter protesters, and elected officials.
Led by former Republican Representative Matt Shea who is now Lead Pastor of On Fire Ministries, hosted the Seattle stop of the five-city Mayday USA Tour—a series of outdoor events in New York, Miami, Houston, Seattle, and Los Angeles—as part of a “prayer activism movement,” according to a MayDay USA press release.
The #DontMessWithOurKids movement, the press release reads, “stands for the sanctity of human life, the sacrality of biological gender, the importance of the nuclear family, and the right to freedom of speech and religion. Mayday USA events will offer prayer and resources to help post-abortive men and women, trafficking victims, those who desire freedom from same sex attraction, and those who are struggling with sexual and drug addictions throughout their restoration process.”
The rally, held in the epicenter of Washington State’s LGBTQ+ safe space, Capitol Hill, drew hundreds of counter protesters including members of the pro-socialism and pro-communism groups such as the Freedom Socialist Party, pro-trans organizations such as Refuse Fascism – Seattle, and far-left Antifa militants.
Shortly after 1:30 p.m., Seattle Police reported witnessing multiple counter protesters throwing items at both Christian attendees and law enforcement, then began arresting multiple individuals—11 in the original melee that ensued.
Video taken by independent Journalist Jonathan Choe and posted by Frontlines TPUSA, shows total chaos with counter protesters and Antifa militants striking Seattle Police Officers and Seattle Police using force to subdue the relentless assaults.
Throughout the afternoon, counter protesters tested established police parameters by running into it, breaking through at times to quickly be arrested.
Some of the many signs counter protesters held read, “We Have Always Existed,” “No in the Name of Humanity, We REFUSE to Accept a Fascist America,” “Trans Kids Are Precious,” “Republican Lies Kill Trans People,” “Rot in hell Matt Shae,” “Jesus is ashamed of you,” and “Love is Louder.”
At approximately 5:30 p.m., Troopers with the Washington State Patrol arrived at Cal Anderson Park to provide support and relief to Seatle Police.
In a video posted to Facebook during the Mayday USA event, Folake Kellogg, a spokesperson for Mayday USA, and Shea, Lead Pastor of On Fire Ministries, shared that they are not backing down.
“We are holding the ground. This ground belongs to Jesus, so we are holding it,” Kellogg said, adding “This is what is going to be known as what is going to shift the nation. Seattle means crossing the river, I just like that because a crossing is about to happen.”
Shea called on religious leaders to take their message to the streets: “The message to America today is to get outside of the four walls of the church and start praying in your community….The power of God and the Holy Spirit is what is going to break through. We save our families; we are going to save the United States of America.”
In total, police arrested 22 individuals for charges of assault and obstruction who were booked into King County Jail. Officers also arrested one juvenile for obstruction, who was later released from Seattle Police West Precinct.
In an interview with the Seattle Times, Kellogg shared that originally Victor Steinbrueck Park near Pike Place Market was their preferred location to hold the Christian revival, but that location was denied by the Seattle Parks Department who allegedly directed the Christan group to Cal Aderson Park, in the heart of gay Washington.
In a KOMO News interview, Ross Johnston, co-leader of Mayday USA said, “If you want us to go there, we will absolutely go there, but it’s just interesting how the mayor has come out against us against Christians and have no ounce of support for us.”
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, in a statement, called the Christian revival a “far-right rally” 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.”
“Anarchists infiltrated the counter-protestors group and inspired violence, prompting SPD to make arrests and ask organizers to shut down the event early, which they did,” Mayor Harrell’s statement read.
Harrell announced that he was “directing the Parks Department to review all of the circumstances of this application to understand whether there were legal location alternatives or other adjustments that could have been pursued.” He also stated that he will review an after-action report by the Seattle Police to determine if tactics used were justified.
In a statement released by the Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG), the union representing Seattle Police, it welcomed the mayor’s decision to review the Parks Department’s decision to allow a pro-traditional family Christian organization to demonstrate at Cal Anderson Park located in the gay safe space of Washington state, Capitol Hill.
“We have no doubt that this city decision, as naïve or deliberate as it was, put police officers in an untenable predicament,” SPOG wrote.
SPOG criticized elected leaders for the current shortage of law enforcement working at Seattle Police—over 700 have left in the past decade: “WE DO NOT have the proper staffing to handle any more of these demonstrations that turn into mass arrests. Even more importantly, we as a police union understand that this city lacks the political will to allow police to use the necessary tools to hold back criminal mobs to protect life and property. This once again, puts lives in danger.”
Harmeet Kaur Dhillon, United States Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, posted to X criticizing the DOJ’s federal consent decree with Seattle which she has claimed led to unsafe conditions for residents by restricting police operations.
The federal consent decree, in place since 2012 to ensure constitutional policing in Seattle, has cost over $200 million in monitoring fees, according to SPOG, and they argue it contributes to operational challenges.
U.S. Asst. AG Dhillon also warned Seattle Mayor Harrell to tread lightly, posting to X about Saturday’s incident: “To deny a group a permit to pray in a public space because of crowd reaction is the classic heckler’s veto, which is barred by the First Amendment Seattle’s Mayor clearly needs an education in viewpoint discrimination.”
Christian Pastor Russell Johnson of Pursuit Church NW requested that Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell apologize to Christians for his statement stating that Christian beliefs “are inherently opposed to our city’s values” and if not, resign. Johnson is hosting a rally on the steps of Seattle City for 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 27.
“The Mayor of Seattle owes Christians in WA State an apology for his bigoted remarks after folks who were holding a peaceful worship event at Cal Anderson Park were violently assaulted for the high crime of expressing their deeply held religious beliefs in the form of a permitted worship event on city property,” wrote Paster Johnson in his statement posted to X. “23 antifa thugs were arrested. Cops were hospitalized. Church people were assaulted. And the Mayor of Seattle has the audacity to blame Christians for the violence.”
Socialist Washington State Legislator, Rep. Shaun Scott (D-43 Seattle), condoned the violence against SPD and churchgoers in Cal Anderson Park posting to X, “We should celebrate Capitol Hill counterprotestors who aren’t letting anti-trans extremists into Washington’s historic stronghold of LGBTQ life without a fight, and are standing up to unaccountable police in the process.”
In its statement posted to Facebook, Seattle Pride demanded an “immediate release of all protesters who were arrested and that the City conduct a full review of the situation.”
Author: Mario Lotmore
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One Response
Any Seattle area resident or visitor who’s walked past or through Cal Anderson since drugs and homeless hit Seattle hard, that is, in the last 20 years, knows that Cal Anderson park in literally crowded with drug addicts and homeless people. Gutter punks, street kids, all the colorful denizens of the streets of Cap Hill. To put Christians here for their rally wasn’t, could never have been, an innocent mistake. It sounds like something mean girls would do, and Im ashamed to admit I believe that’s exactly the mindset that created this entirely unnecessary debacle. Someone thought it would be funny.