As roughly 8 million marched for the ‘No Kings’ protests on Saturday, March 28, a coalition of hotel workers, immigrant rights advocates and UNITE HERELocal 11 representatives rallied outside the Double Tree by Hilton in Ontario demanding living wages and health insurance while the Inland Empire Patriot’s Summit convened, reflecting the heart of the day’s unrest: a fundamental disagreement over power, patriotism and accountability.
The Inland Empire is the nation’s logistics hub. Home to over 1 billion square feet of warehouses, the rapid expansion of development, however regionally and economically advantageous, has raised concerns of environmental justice, community health and income disparity. Protestors say large warehouse and hotel developers have exacted an overgrown influence in the region, citing Ontario as a local example of the polarized American landscape and money’s corrosive political effects. The convergence of the local labor struggle and the nationwide demonstrations against executive overreach foreground a deepening rift in the area and the country writ large.
Inside the DoubleTree, the annual Patriot’s Summit, a staple for the Inland Empire’s conservative base and right-wing leadership, featured high-profile figures like Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. A contender for California Governor, Bianco recently made headlines for his controversial seizure of over 650,000 ballots from the 2025 Proposition 50 special election, a move he denies harbors any “wrongdoing” but which state officials decry as an abuse of power…