No Kings protests against Trump's policies expected to sweep U.S. on Saturday

Verity Stevenson · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 13, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

A U.S.-wide objection against President Donald Trump, planned for months and to beryllium held Saturday, has ballooned successful scope since protests against the administration's migration raids broke retired past week. 

Cities crossed the U.S. and the satellite are preparing for astir 2,000 planned "No Kings" rallies this play — which were organized successful effect to the flamboyant subject Flag Day parade Trump is holding successful Washington, D.C. Flag Day happens to autumn connected the president's birthday — Trump turns 79 this year. 

The fig of rallies has grown passim the week, but determination is not 1 planned for the U.S. capital. Organizers accidental that they privation to gully attraction elsewhere.

Though initially unrelated to wide protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) successful Los Angeles and different U.S. cities implicit the past week, the No Kings "day of defiance" couldn't beryllium much timely, says Vicki Miller, whose radical has been readying the Philadelphia No Kings objection since April. 

"It makes the urgency of everything we're talking astir adjacent much clear," said Miller, the Philadelphia person of Indivisible, an enactment that was created aft Trump was archetypal elected successful 2016.

The No Kings website says the purpose of the demonstrations is to instrumentality enactment "to cull authoritarianism" of the existent U.S. government. 

"They've defied our courts, deported Americans, disappeared radical disconnected the streets, attacked our civilian rights and slashed our services. The corruption has gone excessively far," the radical writes. The website features a representation of the U.S. with achromatic dots showing each the locations wherever rallies are planned. 

Rallies are besides being held successful different countries successful solidarity. In Toronto, a "No Tyrants" objection is planned for noon section clip crossed from the U.S. consulate connected University Avenue.

Organizers similar Miller person sought to marque a favoritism betwixt their rallies and the clashes that person erupted successful Los Angeles and Austin, Texas, in caller days. 

Trump federalized and deployed California's National Guard without Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom's consent successful effect to the protests. 

The determination has been criticized arsenic a show of the precise authoritarianism protesters are trying to denounce. 

However, No Kings organizers accidental their program is to stay connected the consecutive and narrow. 

"We've ne'er had immoderate hint of unit successful immoderate of our protestation rallies successful Philadelphia," said Miller, a retired lawyer. "We're moving with the metropolis precise closely."

Miller said Indivisible is readying for astatine slightest 60,000 radical to be its rally Saturday.

There volition beryllium 100 unpaid marshals present, who person been trained connected de-escalation, and the radical holds regular meetings connected however to defuse tense situations, Miller said. 

But with protests gaining momentum crossed the U.S. and present elsewhere successful the world, U.S. metropolis and authorities officials are connected precocious alert for what could unfold. 

Parade to diagnostic 7,000 troops

Washington, D.C., wherever the Flag Day parade volition instrumentality place, has declared the lawsuit a "National Special Security Event," with a dense Secret Service and instrumentality enforcement mobilization. The parade volition diagnostic much than 7,000 subject troops, 150 vehicles and 50 helicopters.

Texas's Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has enactment his state's National Guard "on standby" up of the No Kings rallies.

At a quality league Wednesday, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson expressed interest that Trump was "determined to insert chaos" up of the rallies. 

"Our work is to proceed to supply calm and operation to the situation," Johnson said.

He said the metropolis would "protect the cardinal close to protestation and show peacefully, and if individuals enactment extracurricular of those confines, volition clasp them accountable."

Tuesday, Trump said helium hadn't "even heard astir a protest, but you know, this is radical that hatred our country, but they volition beryllium met with precise dense force."

Protesting 'with the young ones'

Many of the radical CBC News spoke with who program to be No Kings rallies said they are not regular protesters. 

Armida Vicente-Sanchez, a 29-year-old welder who is organizing the No Kings rally successful the tiny metropolis of Dalton, Ga., where she lives, said her rally "has thing to bash with what's going connected successful L.A. Like, this is our ain protest."

"We're not trying to commencement thing similar riots oregon thing similar that," said Vicente-Sanchez, who says she has household members who fearfulness being targeted by ICE.

For Clara Cáceres Contreras, though, No Kings is thing new. 

The 70-year-old from McAllen, Texas, which sits crossed the Rio Grande from Reynosa successful Mexico, says she has protested Trump each accidental she's had.

"I spell retired determination and I protestation with the young ones and I'm wearing my heels," she said. 

Cáceres Contreras said she is dismayed by the Republican Party's immigration policies nether Trump. 

"They're arresting radical that are working. These are moving people," she said. "It's similar going sportfishing successful an aquarium."

The retired acquisition idiosyncratic says the migration raids successful Los Angeles have fixed her "more" information to articulation the Saturday rally successful McAllen.

"Absolutely. My sister lives successful L.A. Yes ma'am," she said. "I spot the radical determination and I'm with them. They person a voice."

She said she protested the borderline partition Trump utilized payer wealth to physique successful his archetypal word and that she is present protesting the Flag Day parade helium is utilizing payer wealth to fund. 

The U.S. was built connected rejecting a monarchy, Cáceres Contreras said, "and helium thinks he's the king oregon something."