Updated June 14, 2025 at 4:33 PM PDT
No Kings protests rippled peacefully across dozens of cities, both in the U.S. and overseas, to stand against the Trump administration's large-scale military parade on Saturday. But they came against the backdrop of apparent political violence in Minnesota, where a state lawmaker was killed in her home.
Organizers estimated that more than 5 million people participated in more 2,000 planned protests, according to spokesperson Eunic Ortiz. Events were also held in Germany and France, according to the AP. While protests were peaceful, police in Culpeper, Va., arrested a man who "intentionally accelerated his vehicle into the dispersing crowd," at the end of a protest. One person was hit, but no one was hurt, police said.
Organizers are accusing the president of putting on the military parade as a show of dominance and a celebration of his 79th birthday, which is also on Saturday. The Army has been planning some form of anniversary celebration for over a year, but the parade was a recent addition. It will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army, and falls on Flag Day. A peacetime military parade is rare in the U.S. and has drawn criticism from Trump's political rivals.
Tens of thousands marched peacefully in Philadelphia, where organizers were holding their main event, police said. Philadelphia was chosen as the hub, because "there's an indelible link between Philadelphia and between the freedoms and the ideals that the country was founded upon," said Joel Payne, spokesman for MoveOn, one of the dozens of groups behind the No Kings protests.
Ezra Levin, co-founder and co-executive director of the non-profit Indivisible, another No Kings coordinator, said the atmosphere at the event was joyful. "Today what I saw was a boisterous, peaceful display of First Amendment rights," he told NPR.
Protests carried on in Minnesota, despite organizers calling for the cancellation of all events in the state. "This decision comes in light of the ongoing shelter-in-place order and the tragic shooting that targeted two elected officials and their spouses," No Kings said in a press release. Despite the warnings, tens of thousands showed up for a protest at the Capitol, Minnesota State Patrol spokesman Lt. Mike Lee told MPR News.
Democratic state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were fatally shot in what state officials are calling a political assassination. Another lawmaker, a state senator, and his wife were also wounded in a shooting at their home. No arrests have been made in the violence.
Thousands were at a Dallas protest, one of more than 60 planned in Texas, KERA reported. In Alaska, the theme was, "The only king I want is king salmon," Alaska Public Media reported.
Shahera Hyatt of Sacramento made signs for her local event that read, "From Palestine to Mexico, border walls have got to go," and "ICE, you're fired."
"I decided to go because I feel like with unchecked authority, Trump has led America into clear fascism," she told NPR.
There were some feelings of unease amid the protesters, some of whom turned off their phones and avoided posting to social media.
"It does feel like there's a vendetta against people who are exercising their rights to speak up against this administration," said protester Ali Schoenberger of Sacramento. "So I feel like it's important to protect my fellow protestors today and not expose them or even have it on my phone."
"I am completely terrified of what's going on in our country," said protester Margo Ross of Watsonville, Calif. "I believe from the beginning it's been a coup and a fascist overthrow, and I keep thinking, 'well, it can't get worse.' And then it gets worse and worse."
Despite a forecast high of 106 degrees in Green Valley, Ariz., a few hundred people turned up, said Martha Jane Gipson, a retired school teacher.
"I just find the disregard for the U.S. Constitution to be unacceptable," she told NPR.
"I think there is this broader understanding that what Donald Trump and his political supporters are doing is trying to position him as a monarch, as a king, as somebody who can operate above the law. And I think that that is really negatively impacting the lives of the American people," said Payne of MoveOn.
Trump on Thursday was asked about the protests, and told reporters, "I don't feel like a king. I have to go through hell to get stuff approved."
Separately, U.S. Capitol Police said they arrested 60 protesters Friday evening after some pushed down barriers and ran toward the steps of the Rotunda. They say all 60 will be charged with unlawful demonstration and crossing a police line. Additional charges include assault on a police officer and resisting arrest. The groups behind the protests didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
The No Kings demonstrations were put together by a coalition of more than 200 organizations, including MoveOn, the American Civil Liberties Union, American Federation of Teachers and the Communications Workers of America. Protests were not planned in Washington, D.C., where the military parade was held.
According to the organizers' website, the protesters were avoiding 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."
Saturday's military parade is estimated to cost between $25 million and $45 million. Trump wanted to hold the parade during his first term, but it was scrapped because it was too expensive. He was inspired after attending the annual Bastille Day parade in France in 2017. That parade celebrates French mobs taking over the Bastille state prison in 1789.
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