🇺🇸 Overview: “No Kings” Nationwide Protests
- Date & Context
- Took place on June 14, 2025—the day of President Trump’s 79th birthday and a U.S. Army 250th anniversary parade in Washington, D.C. (vanityfair.com)
- Organized primarily by the grassroots 50501 Movement, along with allies like Indivisible (en.wikipedia.org)
- Scale & Reach
- Over 2,000 protests in U.S. cities and towns, plus solidarity events in Canada, Europe, Latin America, and Asia, with participation estimated at 5–11 million
- Core Message
- The protests opposed Trump’s alleged authoritarian tendencies, military display paralleling his “king-like” conduct, immigration policies, ICE raids, and executive overreach (people.com)
🎖 The Military Parade in Washington, D.C.
- Event Highlights
- Featured ~6,000 troops, 150 military vehicles, 50 aircraft, plus displays by Texas A&M Corps of Cadets, flyovers, and ceremonial activities (washingtonpost.com)
- Produced a festival atmosphere with parade routes, speeches, sponsor booths (e.g. Coinbase, Palantir), and fireworks (washingtonpost.com)
- Cost estimated at $25–45 million, partially funded via military budget allocations (washingtonpost.com)
🕊️ No Kings Protests in Major U.S. Cities
- Large Gatherings
- Philadelphia (~80,000 people), plus significant events in New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Boston, Chicago, Denver, and Atlanta (vanityfair.com)
- Tactics & Tone
- Mostly peaceful—marches, chants (“Let freedom ring!”), banners, art installations (“My body, my choice!”), and music (washingtonpost.com)
- Some cities saw law enforcement interventions—notably in Los Angeles, where tear gas and rubber bullets were used to disperse crowds near federal buildings (vanityfair.com)
- Security Measures
- National Guard and Marines were deployed in California, Texas, and other states to manage demonstrations and respond to ICE–immigration tensions
📊 Public Response & Criticism
- Authoritarian Concerns
- Critics argued the military parade symbolized politicization of armed forces, with Trump adopting an authoritarian posture (washingtonpost.com)
- NBC, AP–NORC, and NPR reported that ~60% of adults opposed the parade’s use of public funds (en.wikipedia.org)
- Global Commentary
- Chinese state media chided the U.S., asserting domestic unrest undermined its global image (news.yahoo.com)
- The contrast between the parade and the protests was widely seen as emblematic of political polarization (vanityfair.com)
📌 Key Facts at a Glance
| Event | Details |
|---|---|
| Date | June 14, 2025 |
| Military Parade | D.C., U.S. Army’s 250th + Trump’s 79th (6k troops, vehicles, aircraft) (apnews.com, washingtonpost.com) |
| No Kings Protests | >2,000 events nationwide, 5–11 M participants; solidarity abroad |
| Major Incidents | Clashes in LA, Minnesota shootings, Salt Lake shooting |
⚠️ Broader Significance
- Highlighted a sharp division in American politics, with one side celebrating military spectacle and the other mobilizing mass democratic dissent
- Event fueled discussions around the civil-military balance, police intervention in protests, the role of National Guard, and partisan narrative framing
- Seen by commentators (e.g. Guardian’s Stephen Marche) as a troubling signal in rising American political violence (theguardian.com)
Also read this….. Arturo Gamboa, a 24-year-old Utah man, has been charged with murder in connection to a deadly shooting at the “No Kings” protest in Salt Lake City on June 14, 2025. Details here.
