More than 2,500 people are expected to protest against the regime on October 18, with organizers predicting it will be the largest day of protests in U.S. history.
‘No Kings’ protests planned across the country on October 18th
Nationwide “No Kings” protests are scheduled for October 18 as organizers claim responsibility for the shutdown.
Ahead of nationwide “No Kings” protests against President Donald Trump’s administration, several civil rights and protest groups say they are keen to express widespread opposition to the president’s policies and fear possible retaliation.
Organizers predict the Oct. 18 rally could be “the largest peaceful protest in modern American history,” said Leah Greenberg, co-executive director of Indivisible.
Indivisible is one of the organizations supporting more than 2,500 congregations across the country. Others include the American Civil Liberties Union, the Religious Freedom Foundation, the Human Rights Campaign, and Planned Parenthood.
“This is the American people standing up and saying no. We’re going to live in a democracy,” said Deirdre Schiffering, political and advocacy director at the ACLU. “We don’t have a king, and we don’t want one. We will use our First Amendment right to free speech to protest.”
The reasons for protesting now are:
More than 5 million people attended “No Kings” rallies in June, according to the ACLU.
Since then, however, there have been numerous developments regarding free speech and administrative action.
Organizers cited President Trump’s efforts to deploy the National Guard to a handful of Democratic-led cities.
The assassination of Charlie Kirk also sparked a national debate over the limits of free speech after scores of experts were fired or punished for their social media posts about Kirk.
Hundreds of organizations signed an open letter criticizing the government’s alleged retaliation after Kirk’s death, saying “the government’s vast powers should not be abused to threaten free speech and other constitutionally protected rights.”
In a national ACLU survey conducted at the end of September, only 7% of respondents said they felt free speech was “completely safe” in the United States.
Republicans objected in advance
Republican leaders are pushing back.
In an Oct. 4 X post, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller condemned what he called “a massive movement of left-wing terrorism that is growing in this country.”
“The only remedy is to use legitimate state power to dismantle terrorism and terrorist networks,” he wrote.
Members of the Trump administration and Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson have also blamed “No Kings” for the ongoing government shutdown.
White House press secretary Abigail Jackson told USA TODAY that the administration is “focused on stopping the scourge of left-wing violence plaguing American society.”
“Left-wing protesters can pretend to be legitimately protesting the alternate reality they live in, but violence and lawbreaking will not be tolerated,” Jackson said.
Organizers are anxious and excited ahead of the protest
Organizers insist the rally will be peaceful. The ACLU has trained “thousands” of people in de-escalation tactics and vetted thousands of event organizers.
Still, some people are anxious about the protests.
Hunter Dunn, a spokesperson for 50501 SoCal, one of the organizers, said there were “mixed emotions” between protest organizers and participants in the days leading up to “No Kings.”
There is hope and fear, excitement and tension. But “there’s also a lot of joy,” he added, pointing to a recent trend of protesters wearing inflatable animal costumes.
Robert Wiseman, co-chair of Public Citizen, said that organizations “unfortunately need to be mindful of the threat of investigation and persecution for our opinions, not our actions.”
However, he added: “We do not intend to be intimidated.”
The ACLU’s Schiffering said the safety of the protests was “the biggest concern.”
“It’s not because we think these protests are going to be dangerous,” she said. “Quite the opposite. We think they will be peaceful and beautiful.”
At the same time, there may be “tense” moments, especially in cities with National Guard and federal law enforcement presence, said Franklin Rosenblatt, a professor at the University of Mississippi School of Law.
But if all parties understand and abide by their rights and their limits, he said, protesters were simply fulfilling their “ultimate patriotic duty to share their views and agitate for needed change.”
NAACP spokesperson Dominic Whitehead said the organization’s 116 years of history and experience have “prepared it for this moment.”
“We will not stop fighting despite these concerns,” Mr Whitehead said. “We are going to rise to the occasion.”
“Courage is contagious”
Among the goals of “No Kings” organizers are to voice mass opposition, challenge President Trump’s claims that his actions have a “mandate” from the American people, and build community among opponents.
A big part of that, they say, is media coverage.
Seeing millions of people protesting “might teach a lot to people who aren’t part of society,” Dunn said.
Rosenblatt said this was “very uncomfortable” for the administration.
Organizers say the rally will also provide an opportunity for participants to connect with local organizations to continue their actions beyond Oct. 18. Moreover, they said that despite concerns about how the government would react to the movement, large-scale action would make people feel more secure and confident in opposing the regime.
“My experience is that courage is contagious,” Schiffering said.
Breanna Frank is USA TODAY’s First Amendment reporter. Please contact bjfrank@usatoday.com..
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