Millions of protesters take to the streets to denounce Trump's 'autocracy'
A mass mobilization has been called in all 50 US states
By Brad Brooks
(Reuters) More than 2.600 "No Kings" protests are planned for this Saturday across all 50 states of the United States, a mass mobilization against President Donald Trump's policies on immigration, education, and security, which organizers say are leading the country toward autocracy.
The protests -- large and small, in metropolises, suburbs and small towns across the country -- follow similar demonstrations that took place in June and should serve as a barometer of the level of frustration among those who oppose a conservative agenda that was implemented hastily.
Since Trump took office 10 months ago, his administration has intensified enforcement against immigration, reduced the federal workforce, and cut funding to elite universities due to issues such as pro-Palestinian protests against Israel's war in Gaza, campus diversity, and policies for transgender people.
Residents of some major cities have seen National Guard troops deployed by the president, who argued they were needed to protect immigration agents and help fight crime.
"There is nothing more American than saying 'we have no kings' and exercising our right to protest peacefully," said Leah Greenberg, co-founder of Indivisible, the main organizer of the No Kings marches.
Trump said very little about Saturday's protests. But in an interview with Fox Business aired on Friday, he said, "They're referring to me as a king -- I'm not a king."
More than 300 grassroots groups helped organize Saturday's marches, Greenberg said. The American Civil Liberties Union said it has given legal training to tens of thousands of people who will act as sheriffs at the various marches, and that these people have also been trained to reduce violence. Announcements and information from No Kings circulated on social media to encourage attendance.
Senator Bernie Sanders, a progressive independent, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a progressive Democrat, supported the marches, as did former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who lost the 2016 presidential election to Trump. A number of celebrities also supported the movement.
In June, more than 2.000 No Kings protests were held, mostly peacefully, on the same day that Trump celebrated his 79th birthday and held a military parade in Washington.
