Three Idahoans among those arrested at Trump campaign office in Arizona
Published at
Carolyn Komatsoulis, Idaho Statesman
(Idaho Statesman) — Three Idahoans were among five people arrested Monday after protesting at a Donald Trump campaign office in Arizona, according to Sunrise Movement national spokesperson Shiva Rajbhandari, a Boise High School graduate.
The three included a student at Boise State University and two students at the University of Idaho, Rajbhandari said. The individuals were protesting as part of the Sunrise climate-focused organization.
“Wildfires have broken out across the West, leaving communities like Boise blanketed in poisonous smoke,” Rajbhandari said. “ … I commend these brave Idaho organizers for putting their bodies on the line to stand up to Donald Trump.”
The Trump campaign did not immediately return a request for comment.
Five people sat on a red floor with signs that read “Trump Profits Arizona Burns” in front of a wall of Trump-Vance campaign signs, according to a video posted on X, formerly Twitter. Sen. J.D. Vance is Trump’s running mate.
Must-watch video of a Trump staffer responding to young people sitting in at Trump's Phoenix campaign office to protest his loyalty to the oil billionaires destroying our planet.
"Get your ass out of here!"
"I hope you don't have a kid." pic.twitter.com/VbKrDu7y2P
— Sunrise Movement ? (@sunrisemvmt) September 23, 2024
“I’m fighting for communities in North Idaho,” one protester said in the video.
One of the protesters told the Statesman that they went in with the intention of not leaving the sit-in and that they hoped to encourage conversations about climate issues in Idaho as well.
Phoenix police said in a statement that five individuals were asked to leave by the property manager and officers.
“They again refused, and after given ample time to leave the property, all five were arrested,” the Phoenix Police Department said. “All five were booked on criminal trespassing charges.”
All five had been released from custody by Tuesday.