The second No Kings protest on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, drew more than seven million people at over 2,700 events in all 50 states and worldwide. These protests have the aim to share the message, “America has no kings, and the power belongs to the people,” according to the No Kings website.
Four months earlier, the first No Kings protest took place on Saturday, June 14, 2025, intentionally coinciding with President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday celebration and the U.S. Army’s 250th Anniversary Parade. The October protests gathered two million more demonstrators than in June. Both received national attention, with Speaker of the House Mike Johnson issuing a statement on Friday, Oct. 17, 2025, — the day before the most recent series of protests — regarding the protests. “We refer to (this rally) by its more accurate description, the ‘Hate America’ rally,” the statement read.’
Both President Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance shared AI memes to Truth Social and Blue Sky, respectively, depicting Trump wearing a crown and being knelt down to by democrats.
Dozens of protests were held in the Bay Area, including in San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, San Jose, as well as in other countries such as Mexico, Panama, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Three days later, on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025, the organizers of No Kings hosted a call with movement leaders and local activists to “come together, celebrate what we accomplished, and learn about what’s next.” They said, “No Kings will be massive, powerful, and meaningful — but it won’t be the end of our work.”
In San Francisco, at Ocean Beach, protestors met to spell out “No Kings, Yes on 50.” Proposition 50, or The Election Rigging Response Act, aims to authorize the redrawing of California Congressional district maps, starting in 2026. These maps would be used until the California Citizens Redistricting Commission draws new maps following the 2030 U.S. Census. This proposition is being voted on in a special election on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in response to Texas’ redrawing of their districts.
No Kings organizers asked protestors to wear yellow. “Yellow is a bright, unmistakable reminder that millions of us stand together in the belief that America belongs to its people, not to kings,” the website reads. They cited historical movements worldwide, where yellow became emblems of hope, resistance, and accountability.
Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, an organization that fights for LGBTQIA+ rights, said, “Since taking office, (Trump) has assaulted our freedoms and tried to amass power for himself, censoring history, undermining our voting rights, defying the rule of law, weaponizing the military against our communities, and stripping people of basic rights simply because of who they are or who they love.”
