More than 8 million people protested against the Trump administration at over 3,300 No Kings events across the US and in more than a dozen countries on Saturday, organisers said. The demonstrations, held in all 50 states, represent the largest number of protests in a single day in US history, according to Britt Jacovich, deputy communications director for Move On, one of the organising groups.
The third No Kings protest was organised by a coalition including Indivisible, 50501, labour unions and other grassroots groups. The previous event in October drew 7 million people nationwide. Protesters cited a range of issues, from ICE raids to the war in Iran and voting rights threats. “Since the last No Kings, we’re seeing higher gas prices and groceries, all while there’s an illegal war in Iran,” said Sarah Parker, executive director of Voices of Florida and a national coordinator for the 50501 movement. “The people of America are pissed.”
In Minnesota’s Twin Cities, around 200,000 people filled the streets around the state capitol. Senator Bernie Sanders spoke about the role of the ultra-rich in politics, while Bruce Springsteen performed his song Streets of Minneapolis, leading chants of “Ice out now!” Governor Tim Walz commended residents for standing up for immigrants after federal agents killed Minneapolis residents Renee Good and Alex Pretti. In New York City, multiple contingents merged through Times Square, with Attorney General Letitia James, actor Robert DeNiro and others leading a march from Central Park carrying banners reading “We protect our democracy”.
In Washington DC, a group of Palestinian mothers stood at the Lincoln Memorial waving a 10ft-tall flag. “Most Americans don’t know that our tax dollars are being used to subsidise violence,” said Hazami Barmada, 42. Other protesters marched across the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge to Fort McNair, where White House senior adviser Stephen Miller resides. In Chicago, Mayor Brandon Johnson addressed thousands in Grant Park, saying “Our movement is bigger, our resolve is bigger.” Nearly half of No Kings events were held in traditionally red or battleground states, with some in rural areas that had never seen such mobilisations.
