"Faux-king joke," "No to fascism," and "Democracy, not Trumpocracy": the signs at the No Kings protests were telling the whole story. Seven million Americans took to the streets because they believe Donald Trump is running the country authoritarianly.
'King Trump' shares bizarre AI video of himself throwing a load of shit at No Kings protesters from a fighter jet
Peggy Cole from Michigan drove ten hours to Washington, DC, on her 70th birthday to attend the protest, she told CNN. Because it's"a scary time." "It seems like Trump will dismantle our government and democracy piece by piece if we sit around and do nothing."
In New York City's five boroughs alone, 100,000 people showed up to protest. A Times Square police officer estimated that more than 20,000 Americans participated in a march along 7th Avenue.
The protesters are opposing, among other things, ICE's actions against immigrants, the US president's attempts to send troops to US cities, and his cuts to programs favored by Democrats.
Demonstrations were organized in all fifty US states. Saturday's mass protests follow earlier No Kings protests on June 14th, which drew 4 to 6 million people to the streets. This made the protest the largest the US has ever seen.
Notably, the protests were more intense in cities where Trump wants to deploy the National Guard, such as Portland and Chicago. In downtown Chicago, a roughly two-mile-long demonstration marched under the banner of the No Kings movement through the streets around Grant Park.
Along the route, motorists and local trains showed their support by honking as they passed; one bus driver even posted a “Hands Off Chicago” flyer on his dashboard.
As the parade passed Trump Tower, some participants turned their backs on the building and chanted, “Shame! Shame! Shame!” as seems to have become tradition, a reference to a striking scene in the series Game of Thrones.
Most of the marches were peaceful and riotous, but there were some clashes. Federal agents used tear gas on protesters at an ICE facility in Portland. No arrests were reported.
An uproar arose when a video surfaced of an officer spraying pepper spray into the ventilation hole of a protester's inflatable costume.
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The official White House X account shared a striking message in response to the protest marches. The short post read: “We’re built different. Have a good night, everyone.”, accompanied by a crown emoji and two photos.
The top one depicts Trump and JD Vance with crowns. The bottom one shows Democratic House and Senate leaders Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer... wearing sombreros, a reference to an earlier deepfake video Trump posted on his Truth Social channel, in which he mocked both Democrats by depicting them wearing sombreros and playing mariachi music.
