Anti-Trump Protest Calls For ​“No Kings”

Thousands of demonstrators converged on the Green Saturday as part of a nationwide day of protests against the Trump administration’s increasingly authoritarian actions.

New Haven’s ​“No Kings” rally joined roughly 2,000 similar actions across the country — and saw critics speak out against a crackdown on free speech, the deportation of migrants, and a widespread infringement of civil rights.

The rally — which took place from 1 to 3 p.m. — saw organizers focus their speeches on the intersectional nature of the protest movement. ​“If it can happen in one state or one country, it can happen in any state or in any country,” said Rae Inmon of TransHaven, referencing recent ICE raids across Connecticut.

Inmon urged attendees to see these actions as part of a broader strategy to divide and disempower marginalized communities. ​“One thing this country has done to disrupt movement for decades has been to fragment our communities, keep us in more solidarity units, and make us dependent on the state for care and services we used to get reciprocally at local levels. We need to resist this as much as possible.”

This sentiment was echoed by other speakers, who drew direct connections between economic injustice, policing, and the systemic targeting of both the working class and the undocumented migrants who make up a significant portion of the country’s labor force in key industries.

“The only people destroying our communities right now are the billionaires themselves and the cops that serve them,” healthcare worker and member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation Alejandro S. said. ​“From Los Angeles to Connecticut, we see the same story: the state criminalizes the poor, the undocumented, the working class. But when ICE storms into our neighborhoods, what do we see? Not criminals, but our neighbors, workers who built this country, people who feed this country.”

Saturday’s protest was part of a larger No Kings movement across the country, coinciding with a military parade marking the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army in the nation’s capital. The date is also Flag Day and President Trump’s 79th birthday. Organized nationally by the 50501 Movement — representing 50 states, 50 protests, and one movement — New Haven’s demonstration was spearheaded by a number of groups, including New Haven Immigrants Coalition, Trans Haven, and Jewish Voice for Peace.

The protest also took place just hours after the nation was rocked by a brazen act of political violence in suburban Minnesota, where a man allegedly impersonating a police officer assassinated a top state Democratic lawmaker and her husband, and injured another state Democratic lawmaker and his wife. Public safety officials in Minnesota urged people not to attend ​“No Kings” rallies in that state out of a concern that the gunman may have planned to target those protests.

According to a social media post by New Haven’s police department at 3:14 p.m. Saturday, around 3,000 people attended the city’s ​“No Kings” protest, and no arrests were made.

Conversations between attendees across the Green in New Haven Saturday focused on a wide variety of issues, ranging from immigration to policing, queer and gender solidarity, labor reforms, and international support for Palestine.

One protester, dressed like a Handmaid from Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale, cited the Trump administration’s military response to anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles as her motivation for attending Saturday’s No Kings protest, as well as her interest in policies surrounding women’s issues, education and healthcare.

“I have three children, and I have to make sure that they are safe and that they are kept safe, in addition to all the other babies in this country,” she said. ​“We love our families — everybody out here is here because they love America and they love what it stands for.”

Organizer and New Haven Immigrant Coalition member Ivan stated that the discussions sparked by the gathering were the most important part of the entire demonstration — ​“It brings me a lot of hope.”

Following speeches, demonstrators took to the streets, marching from the corner of Chapel and Temple down to York Street before looping back to the Green via Elm. Protesters completely filled the roadways, carrying signs with slogans such as ​“No Kings Since 1776” and ​“Hands Off!” while chanting ​“One People, One Fight” and ​“This is what democracy looks like!” as they moved throughout the city.

For Henry Guasp, a teacher at a public high school in Norwalk, the protest was about standing in solidarity, not only with his fellow protesters but also with his students.

“There were a lot of people and a lot of diverse opinions, but I think we’re all kind of one in resisting this mess of a government we have right now,” Guasp said. ​“The primary thing that I see is the fact that a lot of my students are very uncomfortable with the way things are going now. For me, as a teacher, I really want the best for them — I had to make my voice heard as well, to show with actions or words that I support them.”

Among the many allies and supporters who attended Saturday’s protest, some brought with them personal histories that linked past movements to modern resistance. Attendee Orla Marein, a German immigrant to New Haven and former teacher, sparked conversation with her sign referencing the White Rose, an intellectual resistance group in Nazi Germany. Some of their leaders were later sentenced to death by guillotine; for Marein, their story inspires her to continue to speak out and resist authoritarianism. ​“I always say, don’t fear — we don’t have guillotines,” Marein said wryly. ​“We only have Guantanamo.”