Large protests against the Trump administration have taken place in cities across the US, marking the third iteration of No Kings rallies.
Event organisers for Saturday’s protests estimate more than 8 million people attended to protest policies imposed by US President Donald Trump, including the Iran war, immigration enforcement and the rising cost of living.
“Trump wants to rule over us as a tyrant. But this is America, and power belongs to the people – not to wannabe kings or their billionaire cronies,” organisers said.
A White House spokesperson called the protests “Trump Derangement Therapy Sessions” and said the only people who care “are the reporters who are paid to cover them”.
The BBC is unable to verify attendance figures by organisers. Previous No Kings protests over the months have similarly been estimated in the millions.
Throughout the day on Saturday, demonstrations took place in nearly every major US city, including New York, Washington DC, Los Angeles, Boston, Nashville and Houston. Crowds also gathered in smaller cities and towns across the country.
Rallies took over the streets of downtown Washington DC throughout the afternoon, with throngs of people marching through the nation’s capital. Protesters lined the steps of the the Lincoln Memorial and packed the National Mall.
Like in previous iterations of No Kings, protesters held up effigies of Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other officials in the administration, calling for their ousting and arrest.
One of the flagship No Kings protests on Saturday took place in Minnesota, where two American citizens – Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti – were killed by federal immigration agents in January. Their deaths sparked outrage and nationwide protests against the Trump administration’s immigration tactics.
Thousands on Saturday filled the streets with signs and a plethora of high-profile Democrats also took a stage outside the State Capitol building in St Paul.
Bruce Springsteen also took the stage and performed his anti-immigration enforcement song titled, “Streets of Minneapolis”.
Thousands also crowded New York City’s Times Square, marching through Manhattan’s Midtown neighbourhood. Police had to shut down the normally busy streets to make way for crowds.
Actor and director Robert De Niro, who attended the protest in New York City, told the BBC’s Tom Brook that he felt it was imperative to get out and protest against Trump.
“I think more people are starting to see that with this guy, it gets worse and worse and worse every day,” De Niro said of Trump. “Now we’re in a war. The next thing is, what he’ll do is put put troops on the ground. He’s crazy.”
De Niro added: “It’s that simple, and we have to stand up to him, to the regime, fight it with everything. We just got to fight, you know, peacefully, but we have to resist. We have to. We have no choice.”
Trump has often clashed with De Niro during his political career, last month calling the high-profile actor “a sick and demented person” with “an extremely Low IQ”.
De Niro “has absolutely no idea what he is doing or saying — some of which is seriously CRIMINAL!” Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social.
At the last No Kings protest in October, the New York Police Department said more than 100,000 people had gathered across all five of the city’s boroughs.
The protests weren’t without incident. In Los Angeles, two people were arrested for assaulting federal law enforcement, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
In a statement to X, it said that two officers had been hit with the cement blocks and were receiving medical care, after a group of what it described as “1,000 rioters” surrounded the Roybal Federal Building and began throwing things at DHS agents.
Elsewhere in the city, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) said “multiple arrests” had been made after protesters did not obey dispersal orders in an area near a federal prison.
Police confirmed that federal authorities used “non-lethal measures” to move crowds in the area, after warning protesters not to “attempt to tear down the gate and not throw items”.
Reuters reported that arrests were also made in Dallas, after “minor scuffles erupted” when counter-protesters blocked streets and disrupted the No Kings march.
American expats abroad also gathered for protests in cities such as Paris, London and Lisbon.
Saturday’s estimated total of over 8 million protesters beats out the last No Kings rally in October, which estimates said drew crowds of nearly seven million people.
SOURCE: BBC
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