On October 18, 2025, the United States witnessed an extraordinary surge of civic activism, as thousands of rallies under the banner of No Kings spread across the nation. From Times Square in New York to the National Mall in Washington DC, more than 2,600 gatherings united millions of Americans in a coordinated display of dissent against what participants describe as the growing authoritarian tendencies of the Donald Trump administration. Estimates from organizers suggest nearly seven million people took part in this single-day demonstration, making it one of the largest nationwide protest waves in US history.

The No Kings slogan draws directly on the country’s founding ethos: a rejection of monarchy and absolute rule. Organizers describe the movement as a defense of democratic governance, stressing the need to uphold constitutional checks and balances against any drift toward concentrated executive power. “No thrones. No crowns. No kings,” the movement’s website declares, encapsulating the ethos of resistance to perceived authoritarianism.

Participants argue that several actions of the Trump administration-ranging from large-scale military displays to aggressive federal interventions in domestic cities-signal a movement toward unilateral executive authority rather than the accountable, law-bound governance envisioned by the Constitution. For many, this is less a personal attack on Trump than a statement about institutional preservation. Actor-turned-activist Mark Ruffalo, who spoke at an earlier June event, highlighted the stakes: “There is no greater threat to an authoritarian regime than patriotic people-power.”

Despite its serious constitutional framing, the October rallies often took on a festive atmosphere. Marching bands, inflatable costumes-frogs emerged as a particularly popular symbol-and giant “We the People” banners gave the events a........

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