Over 3100 events, 9 mn people expected: ‘No Kings’ protests against Donald Trump to be one of the largest in US history?

The protests against President Donald Trump and his administration could become one of the largest demonstrations in the country’s history, with Minnesota emerging as a focal point, according to organisers of Saturday’s “No Kings” rallies across the United States.

They noted that more than 3,100 events have been planned across all 50 states, with participation expected to exceed nine million people, reported AP.

The protests began earlier in the day with a gathering in Paris, where several hundred people, mainly Americans living in France, along with French labour unions and human rights groups, assembled at Bastille, holding anti-Trump placards with slogans such as “War for profit, our troops are not for sale” and “When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty.”

What did the organiser say?

Ada Shen, the Paris No Kings organiser, mentioned, "I protest all of Trump's illegal, immoral, reckless, and feckless, endless wars. “It is clear he doesn't really have a plan. It is clearly that the abuse of power is the point. It is very clear that he is a strong man who is abusing the authority vested in him by the American people as our elected president.”

They have also designated the rally at the Minnesota Capitol in St. Paul as the main national event, recognising the state’s central role in the protests following fatal shootings by federal agents during the immigration crackdown, which turned Minnesota into a focal point of resistance.

The event will be led by Bruce Springsteen, who is set to perform “Streets of Minneapolis,” a song he wrote in response to the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti and as a tribute to the widespread protests across the state. His Land of Hope & Dreams American tour, themed around “No Kings", is scheduled to begin Tuesday in Minneapolis.

Organisers in Minnesota have informed state officials that up to 100,000 people are expected to gather at the Capitol grounds, compared to an estimated 80,000 attendees at a similar event held last June.

The St. Paul rally will also feature singer Joan Baez, actor Jane Fonda, Senator Bernie Sanders, along with numerous activists, labour leaders, and elected representatives.

The White House dismissed the nationwide protests, describing them as driven by “leftist funding networks” and lacking genuine public backing. Meanwhile, demonstrations are also being organised in over a dozen countries across Europe, Latin America, and Australia, according to Ezra Levin, co-executive director of Indivisible, one of the groups leading the movement.

He added that in countries with constitutional monarchies, the protests are being held under the banner “No Tyrants".

For those unable to participate in person, another activist group, Stand Up For Science, is organising an online event aimed at being “virtual and accessible".

National organisers stated during a virtual news conference on Thursday that they predict Saturday’s demonstrations to surpass earlier rounds of No Kings rallies, which they estimate attracted more than five million participants in June and over seven million in October.

Leah Greenberg, co-executive director of Indivisible, said that the administration’s actions are angering not only Democratic voters and residents of major urban centres, but also people in rural areas, suburbs, and across the country. She noted that the significance of Saturday’s mobilisation lies not just in the number of participants, but also in the wide geographic spread of the protests.

Greenberg added that around two-thirds of RSVPs have come from outside major cities, highlighting increased registration in conservative-leaning states such as Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, South Dakota, and Louisiana, as well as in competitive suburban areas in Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Arizona.

Katie Bethell, executive director of MoveOn, another key organiser, said that millions of people from diverse backgrounds, ranging from rural communities to large cities, are taking part in the No Kings protests. “And as we do so, we will send the loudest, clearest message yet that this country does not belong to kings, dictators, tyrants. It belongs to us,” Bethell added.

(With inputs from AP)