'No Kings' Anti-Trump Protests Underway Across US
Deutsche Welle
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Protesters at the rallies accuse the Trump administration of authoritarian policies – from immigration crackdowns and mass firings of federal workers to attacks on the media and judicial independence.
In Washington, Senator Bernie Sanders accused Republicans of serving the wealthiest one percent and warned against a slide toward authoritarianism, declaring that "we the people will rule."
Republicans have dismissed the protests as "hate America" rallies, while participants in states like Florida said they were defending democracy and the US Constitution.
Nearly 7 million join 'No Kings' rallies, organizers say
Nearly 7 million people turned up for the "No Kings" protests against Donald Trump and his administration, marking the largest single-day demonstration against a sitting president in modern US history, organizers said.
The figure is higher than protests in June, which drew more than 5 million people, organizers added.
The numbers could not be independently verified, but Saturday's protests saw millions of people join marches in over 2,500 cities and towns in all 50 states.
“Authoritarians want us to believe resistance is futile, but every person who turned out today proved the opposite," said Ezra Levin, a co-founder of Indivisible, one of the organizers.
But several officials in the Trump administration have sought to downplay the size of the protests.
"Marked safe from kings in DC, since there aren’t any here," assistant attorney general Harmeet Dhillon posted to X.
Over 100,000 turned up in New York, NYPD says
Over 100,000 people protested peacefully across all five boroughs of New York as part of the wider "No Kings" protest, the New York Police Department said late on Saturday.
"The majority of the No Kings protests have dispersed at this time and all traffic closures have been lifted," NYPD wrote on X.
US Senator Bernie Sanders addresses Washington, DC 'No Kings' demo
US Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, known for his progressive views, spoke at the "No Kings" rally in Washington, DC.
"We're here because we love America," Sanders told attendees, rejecting comments from Republican lawmakers that the event is a "hate America rally."
He said that the "American experiment" is in danger as Trump moves to gain more power for himself and for "oligarchs." Sanders, an independent, said the US political system has been hijacked by the ultra wealthy who seek to make themselves richer at the expense of working people.
"We will not move toward authoritarianism in America. We the people will rule," he said.
This article was originally published on DW.
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