A March 1 protest outside the Bandera County Courthouse opposing U.S. military strikes in Iran continued to draw reactions online in the days following the demonstration.
The protest, organized by local activist Robert Rios, drew 26 participants who said they opposed President Donald Trump’s decision to authorize missile strikes in Iran without a vote in Congress.
Social media responses to the demonstration reflected a wide range of views from area residents.
Some commenters praised the protestors.
“Good for them. Proud of them,” Brennan Acosta wrote. “Not easy to stand up for what's right in a town as hard headed and stubborn as Bandera is.”
Amber June Berry said the demonstration reflected concerns about constitutional checks on executive power.
“There are checks and balances for a reason,” she wrote.
Others defended the military operation or criticized the protest.
“I dont believe they truly understand the WHY behind President Trumps action,” Carolyn Fanelli wrote, adding that she believed the strike was necessary.
Nancy Butler questioned the protestors’ position, writing that Iran’s government would not allow similar demonstrations.
Some commenters suggested the protest was politically motivated.
“I think this is more about a hatred of Trump than actual policy,” Randall Adkins wrote.
Others mocked the size of the protest.
“I’m sure the message got to Washington,” Darcy Hasty wrote sarcastically.
The March 1 protest lasted about 90 minutes and was organized with roughly 24 hours’ notice, according to Rios. Participants said they gathered to oppose the administration’s decision to conduct strikes without congressional authorization.
The Bandera County Democratic Party plans to participate in another protest scheduled for March 28 in Kerrville, organizers said.
Q&A with protest organizer Robert Rios The Bandera Bulletin spoke with Robert Rios, a local Democratic activist who helped organize the protest. The following responses are presented unedited.
Q: What if congress did approve of a war with Iran? Would you support that?
A: I wouldn’t, personally. We have seen time and time again that we go into the Middle East with no goal and no exit strategy and the combat goes on and on. We’ve been getting word that one of the recent missile strikes hit a school and killed children. And we’ve had some of our own killed, too.
Fact check: As it stands right now, there are 153 people that deceased from the U.S missile strike in Iran, including children. 3 U.S service members have also been killed in retaliatory combat, according to the White House.
Q: Trump criticized the killing of protestors in Iran that were speaking out against the country’s clerical rulers. How do you feel about that?
A: It reeks of hypocrisy. We had two protestors (Rene Good and Alex Pretti) that were murdered here in the U.S., and they were vilified for protesting.
Q: Do you believe that Trump cares about the betterment of Iran?
A: I’ll say this. Everything that has come out of the administration is a distraction from the Epstein files.
Fact check: To date, there have been 38,000 references to Trump in the 5,300 documents that have been released by the department of justice in the Jeffrey Epstein files, which can be found at: https:// www.justice.gov/epstein Q: How was this protest planned?
A: In just twenty-four hours. I was expecting maybe 15 people, but we got 26. We stayed out for around an hour and a half, an hour forty. And I want to say this, not all of us were democrats that came out, and the support we received from people driving by greatly outweighed the negative responses we received.
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