By air, by land and by lake, supporters and opponents of Donald Trump flocked to metro Detroit on Saturday to get their message out.
A “Make America Great Again” Boat Parade, organized to coincide with the former president’s 78th birthday, which was Friday, flooded Lake St. Clair with red, white and blue through the afternoon. What appeared to be a few hundred boats, decked out in American flags and “Trump 2024” banners, sailed along the shoreline from Nine Mile Tower toward Hart Plaza. For supporters of the parade, the day’s theme was clear: community unity.
“We’re celebrating President Trump, Trump’s birthday, Father’s day, unity in the community,” said Rob Cortis, who mans a repurposed ambulance with an attached trailer with “Trump Unity” spelled out in massive letters. He calls it, appropriately, the Trump Unity Bridge. As he spoke, a speaker on the vehicle blasted Barry Manilow’s “Copacabana.”
“We want to put America first, we want to put the working man first and put the people first,” said Cortis.
The boat parade was scheduled to end in the Detroit River near Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit around 4 p.m. At the same time, Trump spoke at a roundtable at a Detroit church. At 6 p.m., Trump was at Huntington Place making the keynote speech for The People’s Convention. Turning Point Action, a conservative nonprofit, hosted Trump as keynote speaker at gathering. The three-day event touted a roster of big name republicans, including Donald Trump Jr., U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and Trump’s former Chief of Staff, Steve Bannon.
“I think he’s reaching out,” said Mark Miller, who set up to watch the day’s festivities with his family from a park along the water. “Michigan has always been close, but Detroit has always been not for Trump. I’m impressed that he’s here.”
Debbie Lambert, another parader, has been a supporter since Trump’s 2016 run. She hopes his visit to Michigan will help other people in her state “see everything that’s going on, that people open their eyes to really be awake,” she said. She thinks Trump’s recent criminal conviction in New York is an effort to keep voters from casting ballots for who they want.
“We’ve been to many rallies,” she said. “It’s like-minded people supporting Trump.”
In tandem with the waterbound, the group Bikers for Trump headed up a road route for the parade. A school of motorcycles sporting MAGA flags and moving 20 miles per hour were followed by the Trump unity bridge and a dozen or so cars. That group drove down the shore and pulled off to regroup at Beaumont Hospital in Grosse Pointe. Later, a smaller fleet circled Hart Plaza in parallel to the flotilla. At the intersection, cars honked in support. Others lowered their windows and shouted to express disdain.
A few protesters gathered to represent an independent movement of Detroiters against Trump, not tied to any political party, said Mark Airgood, one of the demonstrators. “There is no way Detroit welcomes Trump,” he said. “We know that the vast majority of Detroiters stand with us, against Trump and against the racism he spreads.”
Several different groups of The People’s Convention attendees lingered nearby to observe the protesters as they marched in circles next to the Joe Louis “The Fist” monument, shouting into mega-horns and touting signs.
Perry Everson, a young Detroiter, stood by the crowd with a Trump sign. He’d come out to show his support for the parade. He’s hoping to see more Black voters for Trump in the coming election, but respects that there are alternative views. “I support everyone, everyone has their own opinion,” he said.
A similar dynamic played out in the air: Small planes criss-crossed over the lake with banners in tow. One read “Trump 2024.” Another, paid for by the Democratic National Convention, read “TRUMP’S A CROOK DON’T LET EM SINK UR BOAT.” A few others — two advertising a gun shop and another a brand of cannabis — took advantage of the crowds for publicity.
A small group of supporters waited for the boats to pass by Hart Plaza at 4 p.m., their designated arrival time. A few vessels sporting American flags trickled in. Cortis said the boats arrived ahead of schedule and turned back near the Renaissance Center.
“I was born here,” said Cortis. “And I’m proud to have Trump as one of my guests in Detroit, Michigan. Very proud.”
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