First grader wanted impeachment party, settled for protest at White House: report

A first grader who reportedly asked her parents for an impeachment-themed birthday party led other children in a protest outside the White House on Saturday.

The Washington Post reported that dozens of children as young as seven years old joined Kiyoko Merolli on Saturday at her seventh birthday party outside the White House, where they held signs bearing positive messages such as “Batman 2020” and “I love cats” and were led by an activist in several chants.

{mosads}The demonstration, attended by Takoma Park, Md., Mayor Kate Stewart (D), included street performers and was dubbed the “Children’s First Amendment Demonstration to promote kindness and care,” according to the Post.

I got to go to the best birthday party today! Thank you to Kiyoko for inviting me to your 7th Birthday Protest Party. pic.twitter.com/kWaRDu4iFa

— Kate Stewart (@KateforTakoma) November 9, 2019

“Today we are calling upon the words of Angela Davis, and saying we are going to change the things we cannot accept,” Stewart told attendees, according to the Post. “Let’s think about the world we are creating.”

“The message I really want her to take away from today is to keep doing what you’re doing,” the mayor added to the Post in an interview. “This is really what we try to nurture in our city. We are a welcoming, diverse community — and that does not happen by accident. It takes things like this birthday party to remind us about why our community values are so important.”

Merolli’s original request had been for an impeachment-themed party, complete with a cake depicting the now-famous “Baby Trump” blimp deployed by protesters around the world. Her mother, a federal worker, feared that such a party would risk her job and asked her daughter to reconsider, the Post reported.

“This is a great way to teach kids about the First Amendment, and how to protest safely,” one parent who attended with their children, Malawi Welles, told the Post. “Our kids aren’t just the future. They have a voice today. I think coming to something like this teaches them that.”