The No Kings Protests: What They Show the Trump Administration
By Robert Rojas
On Saturday, October 18th, millions of American nationals, immigrants, and people of all strides of life joined together at over 2,700 locations around the world against a common cause: To say a loud ”no” to the Trump Administration.
As a result of strong policy changes from the second Trump Administration, many are led to believe that the actions that are being taken, the laws that are being passed, and the means by which they are done imply the United States is heading down a path to a “tyranny,” “dictatorship,” or “monarchy.”
Thus, the No Kings Movement was started by hundreds of lobbyist organizations and worker unions together. The No Kings protests on October 18th didn’t just happen in a single place or at a particular time, but were instead protests spread out all over the world, mainly in the United States, Canada, and U.S. territories.
Organizers for the events estimate that some 7 million people showed up to these events, which is about 2% of the entire United States population. This estimate would make it the largest single-day protest in American history.
The First Amendment of the Constitution grants all persons within the United States the freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, freedom to assemble, and the right to petition the government. These are freedoms that have stood for over 230 years and have allowed generations to protest anything the U.S. population sees fit.
“I feel like the First Amendment is so valuable for every person in America, and it was set in place for a reason to protect people, but it being held up depends on the extent it’s taken to. I remember in 2020, in Memphis, there were protests that even led to fires, which should not be protected under the Constitution,” commented sophomore Kevin Siverio.
The majority of the No Kings protests, however, were completely peaceful, with the small police presence attending saying there were no “protest-related arrests” and that the crowds were tranquil.
The last biggest rally of this size and strength in America was the Black Lives Matter movement rallies that took place in 2020. Coincidentally, these protests were also related to actions taken by the Trump Administration.
President Donald Trump was asked by a reporter what he thought about the protests, and he said this: “It looks like it was worth checking out. The demonstrations were very small, very ineffective, and the people were whacked out. When you look at those people, those [people] are not representative of the people of our country.”
His comments quickly drew reactions from students who saw the protests and the President’s response in a very different light.
“I believe that if the President of the United States says that about people of his own country protesting against him, that shows how he can’t deal with criticism,” remarked sophomore Anakin Marcellus when asked about the President’s comments.
Democratic leaders around the nation have been outspoken in their support of the No Kings protests, and many even spoke at the events.
Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an Independent who caucuses with Democrats, addressed the No Kings D.C. protesters with remarks regarding tech billionaires who “have become richer and more powerful since Trump became president.” Sanders singled out Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, “and the other multibillionaires who were sitting right behind Trump when he was inaugurated.”
All in all, the No Kings protests show a shifting opinion in the public eye regarding Donald Trump compared to when he was President-elect, almost a year ago. It is a reminder of the First Amendment and lends a voice to many across the country.
