No Kings!
June 14th, 2025 marked a momentous day in our country’s history.
Like our nation’s founders did 250 years ago when they founded the Continental Army on this day in 1775, people across America stood up and proclaimed “No kings!”
📸 Image Credit: Kriston Jae Bethel
With final numbers still being calculated, it is estimated that more than five million US patriots demonstrated this June 14th against Trump’s fascist, authoritarian regime. While Americans were calling for a country they can believe in, a democracy they can trust in, and for leaders to demonstrate they are for the people, Trump’s narcissism was on full display in Washington DC. It is estimated that Trump spent $45 million dollars of taxpayers' money on what bipartisan critics are calling a self aggrandizing parade.
On paper meant to celebrate the US Army’s 250th anniversary, the parade came off as a sad dictator’s sad attempt at flexing their might. Soldiers shambled through the streets, stepping out of time (a quiet protest of their own) and heavy tanks rolled down Constitution Avenue, inflicting road damage that more taxpayer money will later be used to repair. This display came just a day after a group of roughly 60 veterans and their family members were arrested for peacefully protesting against an administration that claims to be a friend of the armed forces while simultaneously seeking to slash benefits to veterans.
The scale of the protests and sheer volume of voices raised against facism in this country is one for the history books. Few other single day protests in US history come close in number to those witnessed on June 14th. Especially notable turn-outs included at least 100,000 in Philadelphia, 75,000 in Chicago, 50,000 each in New York City, Seattle, and Portland as well as 10,000 or more in Los Angeles (in the face of Trump’s illegal deployment of the National Guard), Spokane, and Milwauake. The breadth of the protests was such that there were strong demonstrations in red states as well, including 10,000 protestors each in Houston, Austin, and Dallas, 4,000 in Nashville, 3,000 in Fargo, and thousands more in Topeka, Boise, and Little Rock. Charleston saw nearly one thousand protestors of its own.
In addition to celebrating everyone who turned out to participate in the large city protests in liberal cities, we also celebrate each individual who attended a small protest that may not have garnered any headlines or special recognition. Thousands demonstrated in Trump-voting states, across thirty cities in Missouri, dozens more in Texas, at least twenty-four communities across Alaska, more than a dozen in Kentucky and Indiana each, as well as more than seventy cities in Florida. We know from posts dotted across social media platforms that we have dozens of examples of brave patriots turning out by themselves or in small groups to make sure the message “No kings!” was heard everywhere in our country. Being brave by yourself takes extra courage which we applaud and uplight.
Beyond sending a message to Trump and our elected officials that America rejects fascism, the real win of the day came from the solidarity we found in each other. Patriots across the nation were shown time and time again that, in the face of Trump’s best attempts to deny us our inalienable rights, our country still believes in liberty and justice for all. Despite the fear this administration has sought to strike in our hearts, we are still fighting for what’s right and for each other.