Huge crowds gathered to protest against President Donald Trump’s policies in cities across the US – among them New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles.
The rally in New York City’s iconic Times Square drew thousands of people not long after it began on Saturday morning.
The streets and subway entrances were densely packed with protesters holding signs with slogans like “Democracy not Monarchy” and “The Constitution is not optional”.
Ahead of the demonstrations, Trump allies accused the protesters of being linked with the far-left Antifa movement, and condemned what they called “the hate America rally”.
Organisers and protesters out on Saturday said the events were peaceful.
Non-violence is a core principle of No Kings events, the group states on its website, which urges all participants to de-escalate potential altercations.
In New York, sections of the crowd regularly erupted into chants of “this is what democracy looks like” as a near-constant drumbeat boomed in the background alongside cowbells and noisemakers.
Helicopters and drones could be seen flying overhead, and police stood on the sidelines.
The New York Police Department said more than 100,000 people had gathered to peacefully protest across all five of the city’s boroughs, and that no protest-related arrests were made.
In Times Square, a police officer standing by estimated that over 20,000 were marching down 7th Avenue.
Beth Zasloff, a freelance writer and editor, said she had joined the New York protest because she feels outraged and distressed at what she called a “move toward fascism and an authoritarian government” happening under the Trump administration.
“I care a lot about New York City,” she said.
“It gives me hope to be out here with many, many other people.”
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has expanded the scope of presidential power, using executive orders to dismantle parts of the federal government and to deploy national guard troops to US cities despite objections by state governors.
He has also called on the administration’s top law enforcement officials to prosecute his perceived enemies.
The president says his actions are necessary to rebuild a country in crisis and has dismissed claims that he’s a dictator or fascist, as hysterical.
But critics warn some of the moves by his administration are unconstitutional and a threat to American democracy.
Massimo Mascoli, a 68-year-old retired electronic engineer and resident of New Jersey who grew up in Italy, said he was protesting because he is concerned the US is following the same path that his home country did in the last century.
“I am the nephew of an Italian hero that deserted the Mussolini army and joined the resistance,” Mr Mascoli said.
“He was tortured and killed by the fascists, and after 80 years, I didn’t expect to find fascism again in the United States.”
Among his concerns, Mr Mascoli is particularly worried about the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and healthcare cuts for millions of Americans.
“We cannot count on the Supreme Court, we cannot count on the government,” he told the BBC. “We cannot count on the Congress. We have all the legislative, the executive and judiciary that are all against the American people right now. So we are fighting.”
Senate Minority Leader and New York Democrat Chuck Schumer also joined in the protest.
“We have no dictators in America. And we won’t allow Trump to keep eroding our democracy,” Schumer wrote on X alongside photos of himself holding up a sign that read “fix the health care crisis”.
In Washington DC, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders delivered a keynote speech.
“We’re not here because we hate America, we’re here because we love America,” he said to a crowd of thousands.
At the DC march, the BBC saw one man wearing a hat emblazoned with Trump’s “Make American Great Again” slogan. He said he was visiting the city, and decided to check out the protest. The man declined to give his name, but said while he didn’t really “get it”, people had been civil. Shortly after, a woman shouted a derogatory comment at him.
The protests weren’t confined to the US.
Throughout Europe, there were also demonstrations Berlin, Madrid and Rome as people showed solidarity with their American counterparts. In London, several hundred protesters gathered outside the US embassy.
There were similar scenes in Toronto, where demonstrators near the US consulate waved signs including “Hands off Canada”.
In an interview with Fox News, set to air on Sunday but teased on Saturday, Trump appeared to address the upcoming rallies.
“A king! This is not an act,” Trump said in a preview clip of the interview. “You know – they’re referring to me as a king. I’m not a king.”
“We’ll have to get the National Guard out,” Kansas Senator Roger Marshall said ahead of the rallies, according to CNN. “Hopefully it’ll be peaceful. I doubt it.”
Republican governors in several US states had placed National Guard troops on standby ahead of the protests.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Thursday activated his state’s National Guard, saying they would be needed due to the “planned antifa-linked demonstration” in Austin.
The move was denounced by Democrats, including the state’s top Democrat Gene Wu, who argued: “Sending armed soldiers to suppress peaceful protests is what kings and dictators do – and Greg Abbott just proved he’s one of them.”
Virginia’s Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin also ordered the state National Guard to be activated, though local reports said troops were not present during the protest.
In Washington, DC, where the National Guard guard has been deployed since August at Trump’s request, no troops were visible at the protest, although local police were.
One protester at the rally in the capital held up a sign that read “I am antifa”.
Chuck Epes, 76, said it was a “loaded” term, and just meant he supported “peace, daycare, liveable wage, healthcare”, as well as immigrants and people of colour.
“He’s gaslighting everybody – or trying to, and it ain’t working,” he said.
Americans are deeply divided on Donald Trump.
A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found that only 40% approved of his performance as president, while 58% disapproved. This puts him about on par with his average approval rating during his first term, but lower than his 47% approval rating when he took office for the second time in January.
It is common for presidents to become more unpopular as their term wears on. Joe Biden had a 55% approval rating, according to Reuters/Ipsos, in January 2021. By October of that year, his approval had declined to 46%.
By BBC News
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