No Kings Day protests spread across the nation
Millions of people took to the streets to protest against the Trump Administration's abuses of presidential power, marking the day of protest as ‘No Kings Day’
Photo courtesy of Myotus/Wikimedia Commons
All 50 states saw demonstrations against the current presidential administration this past Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025. Democracy Now, an “independent global news source,” according to their website, estimated that there were about 2,600 protest sites across the nation. No Kings Day is a movement started by American citizens taking to the streets in demonstrations to make their voices heard, standing up for the idea that “America has no kings, and the power belongs to the people,” according to its official website.
Paul Osadebe, a civil rights lawyer who was fired from his job after challenging President Trump’s lack of enforcement of the Fair Housing Act, was one of many in attendance at a No Kings Day protest in Washington, D.C. He told journalists from Democracy Now, “We need to make it clear that we can’t have an authoritarian government, a government that’s turned into nothing but a weapon.”
The Geneseo community also held its own No Kings Day protest; SUNY Geneseo’s chapter of Peace Action New York State— a nonpartisan, non-profit, grassroots organization of chapters across the nation aimed at making their voices heard to Congress and other representatives— held their own demonstration. The event featured 30 minutes of group music and a peaceful march along Main Street.
Across more than 2,000 demonstrations, it has been estimated that somewhere between five and seven million people attended No Kings Day protests. The attendance of this single-day protest is likely the highest in American history since 1970. In New York City alone, the New York Police Department reported an estimated 100,000 protestors across all boroughs of the city. BBC reported that in large cities, such as New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, the demonstrations were peaceful and no arrests were made.
Nokings.org, the official website for the No Kings Day movement, has resources informing participating citizens about how to prepare for a protest, how to understand their rights at a democratic protest, and how to further establish power of the people within their communities. The “Know Your Rights” section on the website includes resources to learn your rights when arrested, after being released from police custody, as well as basic protestors’ rights and rights when confronted by an US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent. This final section on the No Kings movement’s website particularly stands out during a time when tensions between ICE agents and the American public are high.
Just over this past summer, President Donald Trump posted to his Truth Social account: “ICE Officers are herewith ordered, by notice of this TRUTH, to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in history.” This past summer, ICE agents carried out immigration raids in major cities, such as Los Angeles, where they were confronted with anti-ICE protests and the first No Kings Day.
No Kings Day demonstrations are not only about the President’s increased deportation efforts. Americans have seen President Trump and his administration call for and enact dozens of unconstitutional policies. Just Security, “an editorially independent, non-partisan, daily digital law and policy journal,” as per their website, has reported 28 actions and orders by the Trump Administration that have been blocked by courts.
Some protestors’ signs across the nation read “Tylenol is safer than tyranny,” “democracy doesn’t fear protest…dictators do,” “melt ICE,” “we… not he,” and “your voice is your vote,” echoing widespread discontent with key issues of the administration.