No Kings protests: What to know as millions rally against Trump – Axios
Axios, Updated Oct 15, 2025 – Politics & Policy
What to know about Oct. 18 “No Kings” protests
“No Kings” protest events planned for Oct. 18
Places with planned rallies, meetings or visibility events; As of Oct. 14, 2025
A map of the U.S. showing the locations of “No Kings” protest events planned for Oct. 18, 2025. There were more than 2,000 events planned in 1,700 cities as of Oct. 14, 2025.
No Kings protest organizers expect millions to gather across the nation on Saturday, Oct. 18 in an event Republicanlawmakers decry as “a hate America rally.”
Why it matters: The latest round of protests comes amid growing frustration about the ongoing government shutdown and widespread opposition to President Trump’s military crackdown on Democratic-led cities across America.
State of play: More than 2,500 events are planned across all 50 states as of Monday, organizers said.
The other side: The recurring movement against the Trump administration has garnered sharp criticism from Republican lawmakers who say Democrats are protesting as a ploy during the government shutdown.
What they’re saying: Republican leadership, including House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), called the protest “a hate America rally.”
Friction point: Johnson, in a Fox News appearance, said the protests were being put on by “the pro-Hamas wing and the Antifa people.”
Reality check: Johnson canceled a third week of House votes amid the ongoing shutdown.
Zoom in: “Speaker Johnson is running out of excuses for keeping the government shut down,” No Kings organizers said.
He wrote that Republicans “spend their days sucking up to King Trump & demonizing peaceful protest just as some in America sought to appease King George III.”
“Instead of reopening the government, preserving affordable healthcare, or lowering costs for working families, he’s attacking millions of Americans who are peacefully coming together to say that America belongs to its people, not to kings.”
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said on Bluesky he looked forward to No Kings Day, saying the GOP was “the same kind of weasels who would’ve called George Washington & America’s revolutionaries ‘terrorists.'”
Continue/Read Original Article Here: No Kings protests: What to know as millions rally against Trump
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‘No Kings’ protest live updates: millions expected to gather across the US for anti-Trump protests – The Guardian
No Kings protest live updates: millions march against Trump in nationwide day of protest
Democratic lawmakers including Bernie Sanders, Raphael Warnock and Chuck Schumer among protesters
LIVE Updated 3m ago
People attend a No Kings protest in Times Square in New York City on 18 October 2025. Photograph: Eduardo Muñoz/Reuters
Marina Dunbar (now) and Sarah Haque (earlier)Sat 18 Oct 2025 15.56 EDT
From 9h ago 07.22 EDT
What to know about the anti-Trump No Kings protests
By Rachel Leingang
Millions are expected to show out for protests on Saturday at more than 2,500 locations across America, from small towns to large cities, to speak against the Trump administration.
No Kings, the coalition behind a mass demonstration in June, is again calling people to the streets to send the simple message that Donald Trump is not a king, pushing back against what they see as increasing authoritarianism.
Several US cities now have a militarised presence on the ground, most against the will of local leaders. Trump has promised to crack down on dissent as part of an ongoing retribution campaign. Still, organisers say they expect to see one of the largest, if not the largest, single day of protest in US history.
What are the No Kings protests?
A coalition of left-leaning groups is again leading a day of mass demonstrations across the US to protest against the Trump administration. The coalition spearheaded a previous No Kings protest day in June, drawing millions to the streets to speak out against the president on the same day Trump held a military parade in Washington.
The protests are called No Kings to underscore that America does not have kinds of absolute rulers, a ding against Trump’s increasing authoritarianism.
“‘NO KINGS’ is more than just a slogan; it is the foundation our nation was built upon,” a website for the protests, nokings.org, says. “Born in the streets, shouted by millions, carried on posters and chants, it echoes from city blocks to rural town squares, uniting people across this country to fight dictatorship together.”
Where are they happening?
Organisers say there are more than 2,500 protests planned across the country, in the largest cities and in small towns, and in all 50 states. It is part of a distributed model where people protest in their own communities rather than travelling to large urban hubs to show that discontent with Trump exists in all corners of the US.
For the 18 October day of action, organisers have identified several anchor cities: Washington DC; San Francisco; San Diego; Atlanta; New York City; Houston, Texas; Honolulu; Boston; Kansas City, Missouri; Bozeman, Montana; Chicago and New Orleans.
The protests start at different times depending on location. The No Kings website has a map with details for each location.
Read more about who organised the protests, why organisers are asking protesters to wear yellow, what Trump has said about them and more in our Q&A here:
No Kings: what to know about the anti-Trump protests attracting millions
Updated at 07.24 EDT, 12m ago15.49 EDT
Updated at 15.56 EDT, 35m ago15.25 EDT
Many people at protests across the nation appear inspired by “Operation Inflation” an initiative where demonstrators wear colorful and inflatable costumes to protests, usually resembling an animal or Pokemon-type character.
The trend started with a protestor dubbed the Portland Frog, who began dressing in an inflatable frog costume to attend Ice protests.
A protestor dressed in an inflatable pig costume in Washington DC, October 18, 2025. Photograph: Kirstin Garriss/The GuardianProtestors wearing unicorn costumes during the second “No Kings” protest on October 18, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesA demonstrator wears an inflatable costume depicting the Pokemon character Pikachu, during a “No Kings” protest against president Donald Trump’s policies, in New York City, U.S., October 18, 2025. Photograph: Eduardo Muñoz/ReutersTeresa Clark, 51, of Palm Harbor wears a frog costume as while protesting along Gulf to Bay Boulevard during a No Kings protest Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025 in Clearwater. Photograph: Chris Urso/Tampa Bay Times/ZUMA Press Wire/ShutterstockUpdated at 15.28 EDT, 1h ago15.04 EDT
In New York, Chuck Schumer joins No Kings protesters
The Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, has joined the No Kings protesters in New York.
“I proudly marched side-by-side with labor unions and so many more of our fellow citizens in NYC,” he wrote on social media. “We have no dictators in America. And we won’t allow Trump to keep eroding our democracy.”
Updated at 15.19 EDT, 1h ago14.45 EDT
In Chicago, mayor Brandon Johnson says: ‘We will not bend, we will not bow, we will not cower, we will not submit’
The No Kings protest kicked off in Chicago, Illinois, at Grant Park’s Butler Field at noon. There are at least 10,000 people as the speeches begin. An intergenerational group of protesters has gathered, most with signs opposing Ice’s presence in Chicago or mocking Donald Trump.
Many flags, signs and T-shirts read, “Fuck Ice”, and others read “Hands Off Chicago”, a rallying cry that began when Trump first announced his intent to send the national guard into the city. Other signs read “Resist Fascism” and “Hands off our Constitution”.
Mayor Brandon Johnson spoke to the crowd, which erupted in cheers when he took to the stage.
“They have decided that they want a rematch of the civil war,” he said.
“We are here to stand firm and stand committed that we will not bend, we will not bow, we will not cower, we will not submit. We do not want troops in our city.”
The crowd erupted in chants of “Fuck Donald Trump” while the Illinois representative Jonathan Jackson spoke to the crowd. Later, as ACLU Illinois’s communications director Ed Yohnka spoke, the crowd chanted: “USA! USA! USA!”
Senator Dick Durbin, Lt Gov Juliana Stratton, Representative Chuy García, President of the Cook County board of commissioners Toni Preckwinkle, as well as local aldermen and state representatives were in attendance. – Siri Chilukuri
Share, Updated at 15.03 EDT, 2h ago14.23 EDT
In Washington DC, Bernie Sanders says: ‘This moment is not just about one man’s greed, corruption or contempt for the constitution’
The senator Bernie Sanders took the stage to address the Washington DC No Kings rally. The Vermont senator was met with thunderous cheers upon his appearance.
He began by addressing the House speaker Mike Johnson’s earlier comments, saying Johnson “called these rallies ‘Hate America events’. Boy, does he have it wrong.” He added that millions across thousands of US cities showed up “not because they hate America, but because they love America”.
Sanders then gave various examples of Trump administration moves that he said put democracy at risk, including federal masked agents deployed to American cities, the president’s threats to arrest and imprison his perceived political enemies, and his lawsuits against media organizations.
“This moment is not just about one man’s greed, one man’s corruption, or one man’s contempt for the constitution,” he said. “This is about a handful of the wealthiest people on earth, who in their insatiable greed, have hijacked our economy and our political system in order to enrich themselves at the expense of working families throughout this country.”
He went on to denounce the billionaires who helped fund Trump’s campaign and attended his inauguration, calling out Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg by name.
Bernie Sanders at the No Kings protest in Washington DC on Saturday. Photograph: Kylie Cooper/ReutersShare, Updated at 14.33 EDT, 2h ago13.57 EDT
Here are a few more photos from the Washington DC No Kings protest, expected to be among the largest of the more than 2,600 demonstrations across the country.
People gather in Washington DC on Saturday. Photograph: Kirstin Garriss/The GuardianThe Washington DC protest. Photograph: Kirstin Garriss/The GuardianProtesters in Washington DC. Photograph: Kirstin Garriss/The GuardianShare, Updated at 14.27 EDT, 3h ago13.28 EDT
As the protests are happening across New York City today, the New York police department said it is spreading out across the city to monitor events.
“The NYPD will be out to make sure everyone can peacefully and safely exercise their first amendment right,” the department posted on social media. “As a reminder, there will be zero tolerance for any illegal activity or anyone who breaks the law.”Share
Updated at 14.26 EDT, 3h ago13.10 EDT
In Connecticut, Chris Murphy calls Donald Trump the ‘most corrupt president in the history of America’
Connecticut senator Chris Murphy called Donald Trump the “most corrupt president in the history of America” at a No Kings rally in Washington DC.
The senator addressed the government shutdown, describing it as an “unplanned vacation” that Republicans have been on from the nation’s capital for five weeks, he said.
“Trump does think that he’s a king and he thinks he can act more corruptly when the government is shut down. But he cannot. He doesn’t have new powers, extra powers during the shutdown,” Murphy said.
He added: “The truth is that he is enacting a detailed step-by-step plan to try to destroy all of the things that protect our democracy: free speech, fair elections and independent press, the right to peacefully protest. But the truth is he has not won yet. The people still rule in this country.”
Share, Updated at 14.29 EDT. 3h ago12.47 EDT
Thousands march in Washington DC, where Bernie Sanders will headline
Crowds are also gathering by the thousands in Washington DC, where the senator Bernie Sanders will headline today’s rally.
In northern Virginia, many protesters were seen walking on overpasses across roads heading into DC, and several hundred people gathered in the circle near Arlington national cemetery, near where Trump is considering building an arch across the bridge from the Lincoln Memorial, Reuters reported.
Protesters in Washington DC on Saturday. Photograph: Tom Hudson/Zuma Press Wire/ShutterstockProtesters in DC. Photograph: Tom Hudson/Zuma Press Wire/ShutterstockProtesters in DC. Photograph: Tom Hudson/Zuma Press Wire/Shutterstock“Democrats want to keep the government shut down to show all those people that are going to come here and express their hatred towards this country … Read original article: Read More
#AgainstTrump #AmericanProtests #Cities #ForAmerica #NoDictators #NoFacists #NoKings #NoKingsDay #NoNazis #Peaceful #Signs #TheGuardian #USConstitution
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