Millions march in anti-Trump ‘No-Kings’ protests

Marc Levy, Claudia Lauer and Jim Vertuno | June 15, 2025

Masses of demonstrators packed into streets, parks and plazas across the US to condemn President Donald Trump as authoritarian and dictator-like.

Organisers of the “No Kings” demonstrations said millions had marched in hundreds of events. Governors across the US had urged calm and vowed no tolerance for violence, while some mobilised the National Guard ahead of marchers gathering.

Confrontations were isolated. But police in Los Angeles, where protests over federal immigration enforcement raids erupted a week earlier and sparked demonstrations across the country, used tear gas and crowd-control munitions to clear out protesters after the formal event ended.

In Salt Lake City, Utah, police said they are investigating a shooting “possibly associated” with a march through downtown that left a person with life-threatening injuries. A person of interest was in custody, police said.

The march of several thousand people has just passed the downtown federal building before people started running, and responding officers told people to immediately take shelter, KSTU reported.

Huge, boisterous crowds marched, danced, drummed, and chanted shoulder-to-shoulder in New York, Denver, Chicago, Austin and Los Angeles. Atlanta’s 5,000-capacity event quickly reached its limit, with thousands more gathered outside barriers to hear speakers in front of the state Capitol.

Trump was in Washington for a military parade marking the Army’s 250th anniversary that coincides with the president’s birthday. About 200 protesters assembled in northwest Washington’s Logan Circle and chanted “Trump must go now” before erupting in cheers.

In Culpepper, Virginia, police said one person was struck by an SUV when a 21-year-old driver intentionally accelerated his SUV into the crowd as protesters were leaving a rally. The driver was charged with reckless driving.

“Today, across red states and blue, rural towns and major cities, Americans stood in peaceful unity and made it clear: we don’t do kings,” the No Kings Coalition said in a statement Saturday afternoon after many events had ended.

In Los Angeles, as protesters passed National Guard troops or US Marines stationed at various buildings, most interactions were friendly, with demonstrators giving fist bumps or posing for selfies. But others chanted “shame” or “go home” at the troops.

A few blocks from City Hall, protesters gathered in front of the downtown federal detention centre being guarded by a line of Marines and other law enforcement. It was the first time that the Marines, in combat gear and holding rifles, have appeared at a demonstration since they were deployed to city on Friday with the stated mission of defending federal property.

The demonstration turned confrontational as police on horseback moved into the crowd and struck some people with wood rods and batons as they cleared the street in front of the federal building.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and law enforcement encouraged people not to attend rallies “out of an abundance of caution” following the shootings of two Democratic state lawmakers.

Tens of thousands still turned out for demonstrations in Duluth, Rochester and St. Paul, which included a march to the state Capitol. Walz cancelled his scheduled appearance at the St. Paul event.

Authorities said the suspect in the Minneapolis shootings had “No Kings” flyers in his car and writings mentioning the names of the victims as well as other lawmakers and officials, though they could not say if he had any other specific targets.

A rally at the Texas Capitol in Austin went off as planned despite state police briefly shutting down the building and the surrounding grounds after authorities said they received a “credible threat” to Democratic state lawmakers who were to attend.

Dozens of state troopers swarmed through the grounds about four hours before the event, but the area was later opened and the rally started on time. The building remained closed.

The Department of Public Safety later said one person was taken into custody “after a traffic stop in La Grange, Texas, about 105 kilometres east of Austin.