“No Kings” protests scheduled across U.S. over weekend

Roughly 2,000 demonstrations are expected to take place on Saturday across the nation in protest of recent actions by the Trump administration, according to the coordinating group No Kings. President Donald Trump has gone too far by violating the judicial process, deporting American citizens, and attacking basic civil rights, the group’s website claimed. The group said it planned the protests to coincide with what it described as Trump’s birthday parade in an attempt to reclaim the American flag. A large military parade is planned to take place over the weekend on Flag Day to mark the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army. June 14 also happens to be Trump’s 79th birthday, leading some critics to characterize the military celebration as Trump’s birthday parade.

No Kings’ website showed thousands of locations where protests were scheduled to take place on Saturday. All No Kings events are nonviolent, and participants are expected to de-escalate any possible confrontation with those who disagree with the peaceful demonstration, according to the group’s website. Weapons of any kind, legal or otherwise, are not welcome at any No Kings event, the group added. The group began calling for the mass protests as days of violent rioting took place in Los Angeles in response to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers locating and arresting migrants illegally in the country.

Where did this group come from? A political group known as the 50501 Movement–which stands for 50 protests, 50 states, 1 movement–mounted the No Kings initiative. The group has no publicly listed leaders or sources of income as of April, according to Influence Watch. A full-page advertisement about the protests appeared in The New York Times over the weekend, with Walmart heiress Christy Walton cited as the benefactor. WORLD reached out to Walmart for a comment and did not receive an immediate response. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla, cited data alleging that the Chinese Progressive Association contributed funding to the protest movement.

How are people responding? Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton encouraged people to participate in the protests in a Thursday morning statement. No president can nullify the Constitution because America has no kings, she said. Other democratic politicians released similar statements insisting that America has no king, including New Mexico Rep. Melanie Stansbury and Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin.

How has Trump responded to the planned protests? When asked by a reporter on Thursday what he thought of the group No Kings, Trump replied that he didn’t feel like a king. He went on to insist that a real king wouldn’t have to seek the support of House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune to accomplish legislative goals.

Dig deeper: Read Elizabeth Russell’s latest update about the National Guard responding to Los Angeles protests.