'No Kings' protests draw millions nationwide, organizers say

UPI

5 hours ago

1 of 10 | Protesters hold signs and banners at a "No Kings Protest" in New York City on Saturday. Photo by Peter Foley/UPI | License Photo
June 14 (UPI) -- Millions of people turned out for "No Kings" protests nationwide on Saturday that were largely peaceful though there were some arrests and police had to disperse unruly crowds, including in Georgia and Los Angeles.
In Texas, a credible threat led to the temporary closing of the Texas Capitol building in Austin on Saturday before a planned protest there. The Texas Department of Public Safety evacuated the building and grounds after learning of a threat made against state lawmakers planning to attend the, KXAN reported.
The DPS arrested one person during a traffic stop in La Grange and reopened the Capitol grounds shortly before 5 p.m. CDT, which is when the protest was scheduled to start.
Law enforcement did not identify the suspect or any charges against that person.
In Atlanta, members of the far-right Proud Boys appeared at the city's protest, wearing the group's distinctive black and yellow colors.
Police in Georgia arrested at least eight protesters after they entered a roadway in DeKalb County during the afternoon, WSB-TV reported.
Hundreds gathered to protest against President Donald Trump at a site near Chamblee Tucker Road, and many began marching in the road toward Interstate 285 northeast of Atlanta.
Local police ordered the crowd to return to the sidewalk and deployed tear gas when they did not.
Two motorists have been arrested in separate incidents on opposite ends of the country after driving into protesters, according to a report by The Guardian.
At least four protesters suffered non-life-threatening injuries at a protest in San Francisco when a motorist allegedly drove into them. The unidentified motorist was detained.
Police in Culpeper, Va., arrested Joseph Checklick Jr., 21, on reckless driving charges in an incident that caused no injuries.
1,500 protests scheduled nationwide
At least 1,500 "No Kings" protests nationwide were scheduled Saturday, the same day as President Donald Trump's large-scale military parade in Washington, D.C., to celebrate the U.S. Army and his 79th birthday.
The protests across all 50 states and commonwealths were "largest single-day mobilization since President Trump returned to office -- a mass, nationwide protest rejecting authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarization of our democracy," according to the organizers' website.
The 50501 Movement -- 50 protests, 50 states, one movement -- is one of the main organizers of the demonstrations that are designed to be peaceful.
"The 'No Kings' mobilization is a direct response to Donald Trump's self-aggrandizing $100 million military parade and birthday celebration, an event funded by taxpayers while millions are told there's no money for Social Security, SNAP, Medicaid, or public schools," according to the website.
The parade is officially celebrating the 250th anniversary of the United States Army and has been planned for well over a year, although it has been expanded to meet Trump's requests since he retook office.
The protests were organized by a coalition of more than 200 organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, American Federation of Teachers and the Communications Workers of America.
Protests nationwide began after Trump's inauguration for his second presidency on Jan. 20 over several of the Trump administration's moves, including its crackdown on immigrants and cuts to the federal workforce and services.
Where protests happened
A map shows where the events took place.
In New York, about 50,000 protesters marched a mile on Fifth Avenue from Bryant Park to Madison Square Park, an NYPD spokesperson told WNBC-TV. As of 4:30 p.m., the NYPD reported no arrests or incidents of note related to the demonstrations.
"Real power looks like the thousands of people that are going to gather here in Bryant Park and stand up to their neighbors and for their communities," 50501 organizer Hannan Strauss told CNN during an interview in New York.
In Chicago, several thousand people packed streets in and around Daley Plaza in downtown Chicago. They then marched to Trump Tower, shouting "Hey hey, ho ho, Donald Trump has got to go," and "No hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here."
Events in Minnesota, including in Minneapolis, were canceled though several thousand showed up in the state capital, St. Paul. Minnesota State Patrol and Gov. Tim Walz asked people not to participate after State Rep. and Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were killed. State Sen. John Hoffman of Champlin and his wife Yvette were shot multiple times.
Despite triple-digit temperatures, a crowd demonstrated at the Arizona State Capitol in Phoenix.
More than 75 protests were scheduled in Florida, including near Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach where demonstrators marched to the Mar-a-Lago gates. They were met by Trump supporters.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state is ready to "quell any violence" at events in his state. During an interview on Fox News, he said local police, county sheriffs, highway patrol and the National Guard will be ready to stop any violence or "unrest" against federal anti-illegal immigration efforts.
The protests, large and small, are taking place everywhere except the nation's capital "to draw a clear contrast between our people-powered movement and the costly, wasteful, and un-American birthday parade in Washington."
"We're showing up everywhere he isn't -- to say no thrones, no crowns, no kings," the website reads. Trump on Thursday told reporters that, despite the protests' title, "I don't feel like a king. I have to go through hell to get stuff approved."
Demonstrators gathered outside a Metro station in Arlington, Va.
D.C. residents were encouraged to go to a demonstration in Philadelphia, which is America's first capital and the birthplace of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. The protest includes plans to march from Love Park to the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
A Philadelphia Police Department spokesperson told WCAU-TV an estimated 80,000 people attended the protect along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
Situation in Los Angeles
Protests against immigration arrests have been going on for a week in downtown Los Angeles.
Some protesters in downtown Los Angeles threw objects at police officers as they attempted to clear the crowd using chemical irritants ahead of a nightly curfew, city police said.
The Los Angeles Police Department issued dispersal orders in downtown and approved the use of less lethal munitions that it said "may cause discomfort and pain."
On Saturday, protesters in Los Angeles carried an enormous copy of the Constitution through the streets. The protest drew about 25,000, KCBS-TV reported.
And there was a 20-foot balloon of Trump wearing a diaper in downtown's Gloria Molina Grand Park.
A nightly curfew that began Tuesday will remain in effect through the weekend, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said at a news conference Friday. It turns from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Trump has nationalized California's National Guard at the opposition of Gov. Gavin Newsom. There are 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines.