'No Kings' protests return as Trump ramps up authoritarian practices,
organizers say
[October 17, 2025]
By SAFIYAH RIDDLE
Big crowds of protesters are expected Saturday in thousands of places
around the U.S. in opposition to what some are characterizing as
increasingly authoritarian practices by President Donald Trump.
It's the second "No Kings" protest and third mass movement against the
administration this year, and it comes amid an intensifying conflict
between federal law enforcement and protesters nationwide.
Some conservative politicians have condemned the protests as “Hate
America" rallies, while others say that it represents a “patriotic”
fight for First Amendment rights.
Here is what to expect on Saturday.
Organizers aim to boost political engagement
Ezra Levin, a leading organizer of Saturday’s protests, said the
demonstrations are a response to what he called Trump’s “crackdown on
First Amendment rights.”
Levin, the co-executive director of the nonprofit Indivisible, pointed
to Trump's sweeping immigration crackdown, his unprecedented promises to
use federal power to influence midterm elections, restrictions on press
freedom and retribution against political opponents.
He said those steps cumulatively represented a direct threat to
constitutionally protected rights.
Protests are planned for more than 2,500 locations nationwide — from the
country's largest city, New York, to small unincorporated, rural
communities like East Glacier Ridge, Montana, with roughly 300
residents.
Organizers will consider the day a success, Levin said, if people are
galvanized to become more politically involved on an ongoing basis.
Mostly peaceful protest in June
The last “No Kings” protest took place on June 14 in thousands of cities
and towns across the country, in large part to protest a military parade
in Washington that marked the Army’s 250th anniversary and coincided
with Trump’s birthday. “No Kings” organizers at the time called the
parade “coronation” that was symbolic of what they characterized as
Trump’s growing authoritarian overreach.
Confrontations were isolated and the protests were largely peaceful.
Police in Los Angeles, where protests over federal immigration
enforcement raids erupted the week prior and sparked demonstrations
across the country, used tear gas and crowd-control munitions to clear
out protesters after the formal event ended. 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.
One protester was killed during the Salt Lake City march in June. A
safety volunteer shot at a person allegedly pointing a rifle at
demonstrators, but inadvertently struck and killed protester Arthur
Folasa Ah Loo, a beloved fashion designer.
Utah organizers focus on healing
Four months later, no one has been charged. Experts have said state gun
laws may shield both the shooter and the man who brandished a rifle but
didn't fire shots.
Jamie Carter, an organizer of Saturday's rally, said Utah activists
considered not participating in this round of “No Kings" demonstrations,
but “we also felt that we really had to get back out there.”
Organizers are not affiliated with the groups who put on the June
demonstration that turned deadly. Safety volunteers will be present but
unarmed, and all have received de-escalation training, said Carter, of
Salt Lake Indivisible. Attendees have been asked not to bring weapons.
“We really want this to be a very uplifting, happy event of people
coming together in a community to kind of try to erase and replace some
of the bad memories,” she said.
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Dee Cahill of Margate, Fla., holds a "No Kings" sign as she
participates in a pro-democracy, anti-Trump protest outside Trump's
Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., Thursday, July 17, 2025. (AP
Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)
Concerns about large political demonstrations remain heightened in Utah,
where conservative activist Charlie Kirk was also assassinated during a
speaking event last month.
Crackdown on protests
Trump’s crackdown against protests, especially in Democratic cities, has
intensified since the June marches. He has since sent National Guard
troops to Washington, D.C., and Memphis, Tenn. His efforts to deploy
troops to Chicago and Portland, Oregon, have stalled in federal court.
Organizers in Chicago are expecting tens of thousands of demonstrators
at a popular Lake Michigan park, followed by a downtown march.
Federal immigration agents have arrested more than 1,000 people in
Chicago, the nation’s third largest city, with increasingly aggressive
tactics since September. Protests have been frequent and well attended
in recent weeks, and have boiled over in intense clashes outside a
suburban federal immigration processing center.
“People are angrier. It feels so much more immediate,” said Denise
Poloyac with Indivisible Chicago. “They’re very concerned about what’s
happening in Chicago and around the country.”
The “No Kings” organizers have led numerous virtual safety trainings
leading up to the protests with the help of the American Civil Liberties
Union, which is listed as an official partner on the “No Kings” website.
The trainings informed viewers about their rights during protests — such
as whether you are required to carry ID or if wearing a mask is allowed
(both vary according to each state) — and emphasized de-escalation
techniques for encounters with law enforcement.
Each official protest has a safety plan, which includes designated
medics and emergency meeting spots.
Mixed response from elected officials
The protests have already drawn swift condemnation from some of the
country’s top politicians, with House Speaker Mike Johnson dubbing the
event the “Hate America rally” at a news conference on Wednesday.
Some state leaders, like Texas' Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, have
decided to activate the National Guard ahead of the protests.
“Texas will deter criminal mischief and work with local law enforcement
to arrest anyone engaging in acts of violence or damaging property,”
Abbott said in a statement.
Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom struck a more optimistic tone,
saying he hopes Californians turn out in large numbers and remain
peaceful. He said Trump “hopes there is disruption, there’s some
violence” that he can exploit.
___
Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Hannah
Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City; Christopher Weber in Los Angeles; Juan A.
Lozano in Houston, Texas; Terry Chea in San Francisco; and Sophia Tareen
in Chicago.
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