The deadly pro-Trump demonstration where protestors stormed the U.S. Capitol set a new bar for fear of literal insurrection, especially as the change of power from President Donald Trump to President-elect Joe Biden looms ahead on January 20. Intelligence has made public information stating that they are aware of plans for more demonstrations throughout the nation. Does that include Alaska? Initial reports indicated that all 50 state capitols were fair game, but in Alaska, it may not be so simple.
Plans circulated across social media over the past week, including on the social media platforms that have become a punching-bag of Trump supporters, Twitter and Facebook. The organization Tree of Liberty made public their plans pro-Trump protest set to take place on Inauguration Day. However, the plans became a bit confusing when the event’s public listing showed Anchorage’s Dimond Center as the home to the event, rather than in Juneau, bucking the trend of demonstrations taking place in state capitols. The Dimond Center subsequently closed for the day, as a preventative safety measure.
In a twist, organizers posted that the listing was a mistake, with the Dimond Courthouse, which is located across from the Capitol building in Juneau, as the actual location of a demonstration. Confusion circulated through Twitter and Facebook about whether an event is taking place in Anchorage, due to its population and relative accessibility, compared to the trouble it takes it make the journey to Juneau.
The latest word, as of Friday, seems to be that there may be no large, tightly-organized event at all. An e-mail obtained by the Alaska Landmine from Tree of Liberty, noted that listing the Dimond Center was, in fact, a mistake. Also, due to the mistake: “The event is likely not to occur.”
What’s next? Will there be events throughout the state? Probably, which is why State Senator Gary Stevens told Alaska Public Media earlier this week that despite the confusion, the state is taking the potential of a demonstration very seriously: “We’re very concerned about it. You’d be foolish not to have paid attention to what happened in Washington D.C. and the various plans we’ve heard around the country, so I’m certain we’ll see something in Juneau as well.”