University of Kwazulu-Natal

Protesters Gather Across The U S At Nationwide Anti Trump No Kings

Bonisiwe Shabane
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protesters gather across the u s at nationwide anti trump no kings

Marc Levy, Associated Press Marc Levy, Associated Press Claudia Lauer, Associated Press Claudia Lauer, Associated Press Jim Vertuno, Associated Press Jim Vertuno, Associated Press PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Masses of demonstrators packed into streets, parks and plazas across the U.S. on Saturday to protest President Donald Trump, marching through downtowns and small towns, blaring anti-authoritarian chants mixed with support for protecting democracy and immigrant rights. Organizers of the “No Kings” demonstrations said millions had marched in hundreds of events.

Governors across the U.S. had urged calm and vowed no tolerance for violence, while some mobilized the National Guard ahead of marchers gathering. Huge crowds took part in "No Kings" protests against President Donald Trump's policies in cities across the US on Saturday, including New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles. Thousands packed New York City's iconic Times Square and streets all around, with people holding signs with slogans like "Democracy not Monarchy" and "The Constitution is not optional". Ahead of the demonstrations, Trump allies accused the protesters of being linked with the far-left Antifa movement, and condemned what they called "the hate America rally". Several US states had mobilised the National Guard.

But organisers said the events, which drew nearly seven million people, were peaceful. Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has expanded the scope of presidential power, using executive orders to dismantle parts of the federal government and to deploy National Guard troops to US... Updated on: October 19, 2025 / 10:26 PM EDT / CBS/AFP Crowds hit the streets Saturday in cities and towns across the country to vent their anger over President Trump's policies in "No Kings" protests, which Republicans have slammed as "Hate America" rallies. People carrying signs with slogans such as "Nothing is more patriotic than protesting" or "Resist Fascism" packed into New York City's Times Square and rallied by the thousands in parks in Boston, Atlanta and... Demonstrators marched through Washington and downtown Los Angeles and picketed outside capitols in several Republican-led states, a courthouse in Billings, Montana, and at hundreds of smaller public spaces.

Mr. Trump's Republican Party disparaged the demonstrations as "Hate America" rallies, but in many places the events looked more like a street party. There were marching bands, huge banners with the U.S. Constitution's "We The People" preamble that people could sign, and demonstrators wearing inflatable costumes, particularly frogs, which have emerged as a sign of resistance in Portland, Oregon. More than 2,700 demonstrations were planned coast to coast, with at least one in every state and even near Mr. Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, where he is spending the weekend.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Masses of demonstrators packed into streets, parks and plazas across the United States on Saturday to protest President Donald Trump, marching through downtowns and small towns, blaring anti-authoritarian chants mixed with... Organizers of the “No Kings” demonstrations said millions had marched in hundreds of events. Governors across the U.S. had urged calm and vowed no tolerance for violence, while some mobilized the National Guard ahead of marchers gathering. Confrontations were isolated. But police in Los Angeles, where protests over federal immigration enforcement raids erupted a week earlier and sparked demonstrations across the country, used tear gas and crowd-control munitions to clear out protesters after the...

Officers in Portland also fired tear gas and projectiles to disperse a crowd that protested in front of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building well into the evening. And in Salt Lake City, Utah, police were investigating a shooting during a march downtown that left one person critically injured. Three people were taken into custody, including a man believed to be the shooter, who also suffered a gunshot wound, according to Police Chief Brian Redd. Redd said it was too early to tell if the shooting was politically motivated and whether those involved knew each other. The shooter appeared to be walking alongside the group of thousands who were marching, he added.

Video feeds showed demonstrators running for safety as gunshots rang out. Demonstrators crowded into streets, parks and plazas across the U.S. on Saturday to protest President Donald Trump before a Washington military parade marking the Army’s 250th anniversary that coincides with the president’s birthday. Atlanta’s 5,000-capacity “No Kings” rally quickly reached its limit, with thousands more demonstrators gathered outside barriers to hear speakers in front of the state Capitol. In Minnesota, organizers canceled demonstrations as police worked to track down a suspect in the shootings of two Democratic legislators and their spouses. Intermittent light rain fell as sign-carrying marchers gathered for the flagship rally in Philadelphia's Love Park.

They shouted “Whose streets? Our streets!” as they marched to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where they listened to speakers on the steps made famous in the movie “Rocky.” “So what do you say, Philly?” Democratic U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland shouted to the crowd. “Are you ready to fight back?

Do you want a gangster state or do you want free speech in America?” In some places, organizers handed out little American flags while other demonstrators brought larger versions to wave amid signs that ranged from pro-democracy and immigrant-rights messages to a variety of anti-Trump sentiments. Millions of Americans took to the streets on Saturday in nationwide mass protests against what they perceive to be rising authoritarianism and corruption under President Donald Trump. More than 2,700 “No Kings” rallies were due to be held in all 50 states in what is thought to be the largest mobilization against the Trump Administration over the president's two terms. Organizers estimated some 7 million people protested across the country in suburbs, towns and most major cities. Huge crowds were reported in New York, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston.

Protests were also seen in deep red states—in Birmingham, Alabama and Billings, Montana. Some experts have speculated that the demonstrations could be the largest in modern U.S. history. “Today, millions of Americans stood together to reject authoritarianism and remind the world that our democracy belongs to the people, not to one man’s ambition,” Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg, co-founders of Indivisible, which... The protests come in response to an unprecedented use of presidential power by Trump in his second term. Since January, Trump has ordered the National Guard into Democratic-run cities to quell protests and aid in immigration enforcement, launched a crackdown on left-wing and liberal groups, and implemented a sweeping mass deportation program...

Crowds gather to listen to Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., during a No Kings protest, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Washington. Allison Robbert/AP hide caption One of the biggest days of protest against the Trump administration's policies happened on Saturday in cities around the U.S. The overriding theme of the marches was the accusation that President Trump is behaving more like a monarch than an elected official.

It marked the second massive wave of protests organized by No Kings — a network of progressive organizations fighting against Trump's agenda. Organizers said about 2,600 No Kings events were planned across nearly every state, and that it projected a bigger turnout than the 5 million it said attended its previous nationwide action in June. This aerial picture shows protesters forming a human banner during the "No Kings" national day of protest on Ocean Beach in San Francisco, Calif. on Oct. 18, 2025. Laure Andrillon/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Protesting the direction of the country under President Donald Trump, people gathered Saturday in the nation’s capital and communities across the U.S. for “ No Kings ” demonstrations that the president’s Republican Party disparaged as “Hate America” rallies. (AP video by Mike Pesoli) Several hundred people, mostly American expatriates, gathered in Paris and Madrid on Saturday in support of the ‘No King’ day movement that is expected to draw large crowds in the U.S. against President Donald Trump’s policies. (AP video by Alexander Turnbull and Iain Sullivan)

People are signing a giant Constitution as they take part in a “No Kings” protest Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) Crowds gather to listen to Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., during a No Kings protest, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Washington.

(AP Photo/Allison Robbert) Demonstrators wearing inflatable bald eagle costumes gather in Kiener Plaza during the “No Kings” protest in St. Louis, with the Gateway Arch in the background, on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025. (David Carson/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)

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