Rally For Democracy Set Saturday In Cookeville

Residents asked to rally for Democracy Saturday in Cookeville’s Dogwood Park.

People’s Rally for Democracy Co-Organizer Anne Austin said the rally is a nationwide event. Austin said a group of organizations in Cookeville chose to co-sponsor a rally here. Austin said they are simply a community of people with specific concerns that are at risk.

“We have a diverse group of individuals and organizations,” Austin said. “And we may not align on every single issue as to what is important to us or the most important to us, but this diverse group does believe that protecting people’s rights and protecting democracy is very important.”

Austin said the rally focuses on freedom and the preservation of democracy. Austin said the organizers want to protect core values and to protect the rights of minority groups. The rally takes place Saturday from 12:00pm to 4:00pm at the Dogwood Park Performance Pavilion.

“For the rights of, whether its black people, whether its immigrants, whether its gay people, whether it’s gun safety for children’s rights not to be massacred at school,” Austin said. “ Those types of issues that are important to people and where we need to take action to try and protect and also to protect democracy.”

Austin said that your voice is a tool that must be used. Austin said the rally is a non-partisan event, though the Democratic Party is involved. Austin said they also have Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood and Tennessee environmental groups participating.

“It is a broad, a loose coalition of organizations who are just coming together to speak and give out information,” Austin said. “And talk about actions that can be taken to protect what you are interested in the most.”