CADEN HAYNOR / NEWS EDITOR

Over seven million people mobilized  across  the  U.S.  in  the “No  Kings”   protest,  including  tens  of   thousands  of  San Diegans on Oct. 18.  These  protesters  rallied around  multiple  different  San Diego   areas,  waving   signs  opposing what the protestors described as the authoritarian tendencies of President  Trump’s   administration.

USD senior Madison Gambon attended the “No Kings” protest in San Diego. She explained why she decided to demonstrate.

“I went to the ‘No Kings’ protest because I’m tired of seeing how the current administration has completely disregarded the checks and balances that are supposed to protect our democracy,” Gambon stated. “It feels like there’s this growing mindset that leadership means control rather than accountability, and that’s dangerous. The racism coming from ICE, the lack of compassion in policy decisions and the overall carelessness we see from those in power all point to a system that’s forgotten its purpose — to serve the people.”

The name of the protest, “No Kings,”  is  a  move   by  the  creators of   the  campaign  to evoke  a  founding principle of the U.S.,  which  is  that it  is  a  republic  and not a monarchy. Some protesters believe that there is currently executive overreach in the federal government. 

The protest is in support of certain ideas of democracy, such as checks and balances, judicial independence and congressional oversight. Many protestors at the events hold signs, some depicting broken crowns, references to the federalist papers and slogans like “We the People, not the Palace.” 

USD senior Sophia Skubic demonstrated at the “No Kings” protest and gave her thoughts on why she was there.

“I   went  to  the   No Kings protest  in  San   Diego  to   show   my  support  for  this   country and my beliefs,”  Skubic  said.  “I  refuse  to   sit  on  the   sidelines  when   there is so  much negativity  in  our  world right  now  and  strive  to  get  involved  however   I  can.  I   think  protesting is a way to inspire and support others and show that there is  hope  even   in  the   hardest times… I do think it  can make a difference in the political sphere — when people get together like this they get  harder and harder to silence and it will eventually  show  in  the white house.”

The  protest  in  October was not the  first   time  groups of  people protested against  the Trump administration  this   year.  The  first “No Kings”    protest  was  held  on June   14,    Trump’s   birthday   and the  U.S.  Army’s    250th  anniversary. This nationwide protest had over five million participants.

USD   junior Kian Drees shared his thoughts on the “No Kings” protests.

“I feel like the  people doing these  protests  are  calling  Trump an authoritarian,  which  I  think  just isn’t true,” Drees said. “I think the name ‘No Kings’ is misleading because it’s implying that Trump is a king, but we’re in a democracy. It seems like they’re trying to scare people. There are definitely still checks and balances in place in America.”

The  most  recent  protest  included  over  2,500 events across 50 states, including multiple California cities. The largest San Diego rally hosted 25,000 participants at Waterfront Park, which stood alongside smaller demonstrations in areas such as Ocean Beach, Chula Vista and San Diego State University.

USD first-year Soleyana Mussie attended the “No Kings” protest and talked about the actions of the federal government that drew her to the protest.

“The  point of  the  presidency is that  it’s  supposed  to  enact  and execute  what  essentially  the people   want  through the legislative branch,” Mussie remarked. “The power  of  the president is to execute, not to create his  own  laws  or  break   laws because that’s   unconstitutional […] A lot of the things the Trump administration  is  doing is in direct contradiction to the Constitution and it’s also self-serving […]  I  feel like Trump is  praying  on  immigrants because it’s such an easy scapegoat to all the issues that are arising in the presidency. If    the  economy crashes,  it’s  immigrants  trying  to take  our   jobs.   It’s   really  easy   to  put  blame  on   this   unknown  entity.”

Gambon described the feeling of being amongst many people at the protest.

“The protest itself had this really powerful energy,” Gambon said. “People were frustrated, but it wasn’t just anger — it was solidarity. Everyone there cared deeply about the same issues, and there was this feeling that we weren’t alone in wanting change.”

Gambon went on to explain why peaceful demonstrations like “No Kings” are important for the American people.

“Protests like this matter because   they    show    that   people  are    paying    attention,   that we’re not  going   to   stay  silent   when we see injustice,”  Gambon  said. “Even if  it  doesn’t   change  things   overnight, it sparks conversation, builds  awareness,  and reminds those in power that  their  actions have consequences.  To  me, protesting   is   about   reclaiming  your voice and  standing   up  for   what’s   right,  especially  when it feels like the people  in   charge  aren’t   listening.”

Peaceful protests have marked a significant portion of U.S. political history. The Montgomery Bus Boycott and march on Washington during the civil rights movement were two significant   peaceful protests  led by   Martin Luther King Jr. 

Taking     inspiration    from   those peaceful   protests,   the   organizers   of   the   “No Kings”   demonstrations  had  trained  marshals  responsible  for crowd   coordination, participants  were  asked  to   sign   or   verbally    commit  to  nonviolence  pledges and in some  cities,   protesters  had  trained groups of  people  present  for  conflict   resolution    and  medical aid.

Mussie had a critique on the protest related to this self-policing.

“I feel like if we stop policing ourselves so much within our protests, then we would get more done,” Mussie said. “And I’m not necessarily saying, ‘let’s go pillage the streets.’ I’m just saying if there were demands, if there was maybe a speech, if there was some sort of interruption. And I feel like a really good way of doing this is interrupting consumerism, where you have workers completely walk out of facilities and walk with the protesters and actively not participating in that aspect of society to create a disturbance. I feel like people forget that a big part of protesting is disturbance.”

The USD community will continue to assess whether the Trump Administration’s decisions are executive overreach or furthering a democratic agenda.

Tens of thousands of San Diegans gathered to demonstrate in the ‘No Kings’ protest. Photo courtesy of @dosandiego/Instagram