November 8, 2017 will mark one year of Donald Trump being elected president of the United States. As a photojournalist for ThisisReno.com I have had the opportunity to cover many of Reno’s events.
Reno is called the “Biggest Little City,” and for a long time has been a relatively quiet city, politically. Large protests or rallies were something seen on the news from other cities such as Davis, San Francisco, or Berkeley. Large rallies have not always been a feature of Reno.
This seemingly changed during the 2016 election season as the nation split between candidates Trump and Clinton. After the election, Reno’s political environment became more active. With the Women’s March in January Reno saw its largest ever rally, numbering around 10,000 people.
April brought the Tax Day Rally with calls for the release of President Trump’s tax returns, something not legally required but expected among presidential candidates. The Virginia Street Bridge became a rallying site during the “Bridges Not Walls” rally.
One of the more heated protests took place during Trump’s visit to Reno to speak in front of members of the American Legion. Anti-Trump protesters and pro-Trump counter protesters clashed verbally under the watchful eye of Reno’s Police Department.
Reno has begun to see more radical elements of “the resistance” including Antifa who were visible at both the Charlottesville, Virginia vigil on Aug. 14 and the Black Lives Matter March at the University of Nevada, Reno the next day.
As it has now been a year, I have gone back through my image catalog and put together a selection of images from Reno rallies and protests from Nov. 8, 2016 to Nov. 8, 2017.
Regardless of political affiliations, Reno has seen a change in its political involvement. The question now is, will this new enthusiasm fade over the coming years or grow?
