There was significant trepidation surrounding Sunday’s America First! rally in Laguna Beach. It was the first such event to be held in California since the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, which saw white supremacists and neo-nazis marching with tiki torches, dozens of injuries, and the murder of a counter-protester by a member of the far right. Fortunately, Orange County’s public safety officers and citizens came through.
Thousands were in attendance at Main Beach on Sunday, authorities said. But the police presence was also massive. Sgt. Jim Cota. said he hadn’t seen a response like this since the Laguna Beach fire of 1993.
Despite the large crowds, arrests were minimal (three are confirmed as of this writing). Reports indicate that peaceful counter-protesters overwhelmed the number of original demonstrators, which resulted in some screaming and yelling, but also some actual dialogue.
All eyes are now on the northern part of the state. Officials in Berkeley are bracing for an “anti-communist” event on Sunday and have already passed an urgency ordinance meant to give officials more leeway in dealing with unauthorized demonstrations. Read more about that here.