“No Kings” Part II marked one of the largest single-day nationwide demonstrations in U.S. history, according to organizers.
“We will not move toward authoritarianism in America!” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said to “No Kings” protesters in Washington, D.C. “We the people will rule!”
With music, costumes, and flags, millions of Americans on Saturday participated in the second “No Kings” protests against President Trump and his administration. Organizers said about 2,600 “No Kings” events were planned in almost every state, per NPR, projecting a bigger turnout than the 5 million people it said attended the previous rallies in June that coincided with Trump’s birthday/military parade. Some cities outside the United States also participated.
Protesters condemned Trump’s actions since he returned to the White House, including deploying the National Guard to mostly Democratic-run cities, having masked immigration agents engage in widespread arrests of nonviolent migrants, gutting the federal government’s civil service and funding for scientific and liberal causes, and punishing opposition free speech. The protesters also specifically argued that Trump’s unilateral actions — which at points appear to be defying court orders — reek of authoritarianism. Trump responded Saturday night by posting an AI-generated video of him flying around taking a dump on protesters.
These events were specifically billed as being patriotic, with some demonstrators making a point to bring American flags in response to Republicans falsely painting “No Kings” protests as “hate America rallies” that were pro-Hamas.
“We call it the ‘hate America’ rally that will happen Saturday,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said to reporters earlier in the week. “Let’s see who shows up for that. I bet you you’ll see Hamas supporters, I bet you’ll see antifa types, I bet you’ll see the Marxists on full display — the people who don’t want to stand and defend the foundational truths of this republic.”
After protests dispersed in New York City, the NYPD put out a statement that said, “We had more than 100,000 people across all five boroughs peacefully exercising their first amendment rights and the NYPD made zero protest-related arrests.”
Political observers have billed the protests as the largest anti-Trump demonstrations of his second term, suggesting the resistance movement may have found its footing after a slow initial response.
