Tens of thousands of Central Coast residents showed up for one of the peaceful “No Kings Day of Action” protests on Saturday, October 18.
From Monterey to Simi Valley, there were at least twelve protests scheduled along the California Coast in nearly every city.
Throughout the United States, organizers estimate over seven million Americans joined one of the 2,700 peaceful protests across all 50 states. That is 2 million more than June of this year, the first-ever No Kings protest.
In Santa Barbara, local organizer Indivisible Santa Barbara estimates 13,000 people gathered at Alameda Park for a rally and march down Anacapa Street to De La Guerra Plaza. The rally featured speeches by Congressman Salud Carbajal, Assemblymember Gregg Hart, 805 Undocufund Executive Director Primitiva Hernandez, Immigrant Legal Defense Center Executive Director Julissa Peña, and Planned Parenthood California Central Coast President Jenna Tosh.
“Opposition to Donald Trump runs wide and deep, especially in this community,” said Larry Behrendt, a leader of the Indivisible Santa Barbara. “The administration has defied our courts, deported American citizens, disappeared people off the streets, and slashed our services—all while orchestrating a massive giveaway to their billionaire allies. We in Santa Barbara join millions of Americans to say, this must stop now.”
Indivisible Santa Barbara partnered with other important local groups to put together the local No Kings event including 805 Undocufund, CAUSE (Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy), Commit to Democracy, Democratic Women of Santa Barbara County, Immigrant Legal Defense Center, La Casa de la Raza, Planned Parenthood California Central Coast, Santa Barbara County Democratic Party, Santa Barbara Transgender Advocacy Network, Santa Barbara Women’s Political Committee, Social Security Works PAC, The Fund for Santa Barbara, The POD, Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara.
Edhat readers from Solvang and Lompoc reported a great turn outs for their respective locations as well with hundreds of people joining the rally. In Lompoc, participants stood on the four corners of North H Street and Central Avenue. One person held a sign stating, “This is so 1776. Why are we still having to fight for our rights in 2025?”
“As President Trump continues to pretend he’s a dictator, today we stood up together to push back against his hateful, authoritarian actions,” said Susie Reilly, communications lead for Lompoc Indivisible. “Our peaceful day of action brought together local residents from all walks of life who share a simple message: We don’t do kings in America.”
In Solvang, it’s estimated that 600 families, students, seniors, and veterans gathered peacefully on the sidewalks organized by Indivisible SYV. Many carried signs proclaiming, “No due process-no rights, no freedom. Justice for ALL” and “When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty.” Organizers stated one of the youngest participants, a six-year-old, proudly displayed a hand-painted sign reading “Love your neighbors” and “We don’t like bullies.”
In Los Angeles, about 100,000 people joined the massive rally and in San Francisco about 50,000 people joined on the beach to spell out “No Kings, Yes on 50.”
National organizers state this was one of the largest single-day nationwide demonstrations in U.S. history, where Americans stood together in nonviolent defiance of authoritarianism and affirming that this nation belongs to its people, not to kings.
Saturday’s event is estimated to be 14 times larger than both of President Trump’s presidential inaugurations combined, marking a historic moment of unity and resistance, organizers state.
“Today, millions of Americans stood together to reject authoritarianism and remind the world that our democracy belongs to the people, not to one man’s ambition,” said Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg, Co-Founders, Indivisible. “Authoritarians want us to believe resistance is futile, but every person who turned out today proved the opposite. This movement isn’t about a single protest; it’s about a growing chorus of Americans who refuse to be ruled. Trump may want a crown, but in this country, there are no kings.”
The rally comes as the federal government is in its third week of shutdown after Republican and Democratic politicians fail to resolve an ongoing budget dispute. Democrats want to see an extension of expiring tax credits to make health insurance cheaper for millions of Americans, and reverse Trump’s cuts to Medicaid. Republicans, who control the White House, Senate, and House, are refusing to negotiate across the aisle.
Unions are urging politicians to come to an agreement as thousands of workers are impacted by the shutdown.
“Today, SEIU members and unions across the country exercised our First Amendment right to show what real power looks like,” said Joseph Bryant, Executive Vice President, 32BJ SEIU. “From care workers to janitors to educators, millions filled the streets to reject the lawlessness of this administration. We demand that our healthcare be protected and not robbed for billionaire tax breaks. We demand an end to cruel ICE raids and militarized takeovers of our cities that make no one safer. And we demand that federal workers who serve our communities be reinstated. When working people move together, we can defend democracy and build a future where every one of us can thrive.”
In response to the rallies, President Trump posted an A.I. generated video on Truth Social depicting him as a king wearing a crown, loading a fighter jet, and dumping fecal matter on Americans at the rallies.
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Excellent coverage and great photography. Thank you very much to Edhat staff for all the work put into creating quality content!
No kings protests are code for ‘my team lost and I can’t handle it.’
No kings protests are code for “Release the Epstein files.”
Odd that you didn’t seem to be concerned about that at all during the Biden administration.
ZIPS – sigh….. you people really need to learn facts. The files were under seal until January 2024, meaning they couldn’t be released. Guess who was president then? Not Biden.
Also, Trump made “releasing the files” a major point of his entire campaign. Did you think he was just joking?
Finally, we don’t care who is on it. We want justice for the victims and punishment for the child rapists, regardless who they are.
I bet you also think Biden sent the FBI on Jan 6, you know….. when Trump was president.
MAGA is not our best and definitely not our brightest!
Zipstain why do you protect PED0S? What’s in it for you?
Proving yet again what a dishonest piece of whatabouting crap you are, as you have been told repeatedly that the files were sealed by the court.
Pinhead posts are code for cluelessness.
ZIPS – quick question: why do you support the degradation of our constitutional rights? Why do you support sending billions of $s to other countries who Trump “likes” while cutting funds to healthcare to all Americans? Why do you support funding ICE agents to rip apart families while taking money away from starving children? Why do you support the defense and protection of child ra****s?
See, these are just some of the things we “can’t handle.” Why are you OK with them?
I bet you won’t answer…..
I read your comment and assumed you were not serious. You aren’t serious are you?
Did you think that the Biden administration didn’t support nations it favored, while cutting funds for veterans? ICE agents are arresting people with pending criminal charges, and/or criminal charges that would have prevented them from legally obtaining residence. Obama deported 3 times as many illegal aliens- why didn’t you scream at the sky then? Child ra****s? Like registered Democrat Epstein?
The one thing you don’t seem to be able to handle is reality.
ZIPS – dead serious.
– Biden is not president. Stop “whatabouting” Biden.
– “ICE agents are arresting people with pending criminal charges” – only about 25-30% of those they arrest have criminal records. FACT.
– “Obama deported 3 times as many illegal aliens” – Obama is not president. Stop “whatabouting” Obama. Also, as we’ve all explained to you million times, Obama actually went after criminals and did not send masked racists into the streets to round up anyone who looks non-white.
– “Child ra****s? Like registered Democrat Epstein?” – Yes, like those who r***d children with him, republican and democrat alike. Trump was his best friend so….
Now, go ahead and actually answer my question.
Why do you support all those things I listed? You didn’t answer at all, just deflected, lied and whatabouted.
You FAIL.
Zipstain seems to protect pedos who are “registered democrats”. I wonder why.
Jesus, man, you cry more than a ten year old who just had his gaming console taken away.
No Kings protests are code for the Declaration of Independence, although the signers of that document didn’t have to contemplate a wannabe King who fantasizes about dumping loads of diarrhea on Americans from a jet airplane.
ziphead is code for “I’m a stupid ignorant intellectually dishonest piece of right wing crap”.
One of the fundamental problems with right wingers is that they think of politics as a team competition. This is why they support and root for Trump and other GOP grifters, pedophiles, sociopaths, racists, and fascists and defend them with fallacious arguments, citations only from right wing sources, etc. with no regard for truth or for the actual consequences of their policies and actions. This is why these scum are happy to hear that Trump wants to hurt blue states, or members of “the other team” like immigrants, LGBTQ+, minorities, women. This is a profoundly stupid approach to the world, but there you have it. And of course the grifters take advantage of this moronic team framing at every opportunity, and so we have garbage like zip and do-lie and chuff et. al. doing tremendous harm to their own interests, along with the rest of us.
MarcelK: Time to calm down. By now, we should all be able to see that the moron/grifter/garbage/scum right wingers are “winning” by getting under our skin. It’s true. Their strategy is working and The King is still the king in his own mind. Time to take a new approach because being permanently upset is not working for anyone. The next step is for someone to start the process for a third impeachment and that’ll do exactly nothing except “fight fascism”….whatever that means these days (clue: means nothing). My advice is to “chill” out for a week or two and reflect on what is actually happening. Peace to all.
Bees, stop pretending you are a democrat all of a sudden. Weird schtick.
Again, my advice is to simply take a moment to calm down (“chill” out) for as long as it takes and reflect on what is actually happening. Referring to others who may not have the same exact opinion/viewpoint as idiots/scum/fascists/Nazis/etc. is hateful and taking us backwards. Like Kamala said on so many occasions, “Time to turn the page.” Yes, it’s time to turn the page and get on with business. The government shutdown is now potentially expected to last to/through Thanksgiving. Who the heck do you think benefits from the shutdown? Clue: The King.
BEES – “Referring to others who may not have the same exact opinion/viewpoint as idiots/scum/fascists/Nazis/etc. is hateful and taking us backwards.”
People who support the defense of child rapists, support blatantly and openly admitted racist policies such as racial profiling by ICE, support violating the 1st Amendment when it comes to criticizing Israel or Charlie Kirk, support the use of the military and violence against peaceful protesters are, in fact, fascists, racists, and scum.
These are facts. It’s not hateful to point this out. It IS hateful to say/do/support these things and so are you for CONSTANTLY and ONLY defending them.
You’ve fooled no one here, BEES. You’re not interested in peace or goodwill. You accept and tell others to be tolerant of abject hate and cruelty. Shame on you.
The real shame is that the “Us” vs “Them” attitude is getting us nowhere. At some point, we need to get it together or else we all fail. Making “mountains” out of “molehills” on a constant basis diminishes the actual mountains that we need to tackle. Let’s agree that we should start out by getting the government reopened by voting for the CR. If a CR is not passed, then you-know-who is going to continue chopping valuable programs. So, let’s “turn the page” and move toward building a bigger, brighter, and positive future. To do that, we need some adults in the room.
Your strange trolling schtick isn’t lost on us Bees – everyone just finds it absurd, and not even worth a decent laugh.
The Orange Moron has fired all the functional adults, a group to which BK obviously does not belong.
BEES – give it a rest. You’ve not once taken stand with democrats and the thinly “veiled” attempts at kumbaya are absurd. This is no longer a difference of political opinions. On most, if not all, issues at the core of this massive, historic protest are rooted in simple right vs wrong. Lawful vs unlawful. Good vs evil. This is all much bigger than you keep pretending.
True Americans know what’s going on. You don’t.
Get a better candidate next time. Democracy is simple. No one cheated in the last election. It’s time for you angry lefties to rally for policies that will win something from the American populous, or…keep gettin’ real mad on weekends, with signs.
At least they didn’t take dumps in the Capitol or send antisemitic texts like the people you support.
BASIC – learn how to read FFS. No one ever said anyone cheated. My God….is that what you think this is about?
Since zips is too cowardly to answer my questions, can you?
Here you go:
Why do you support the degradation of our constitutional rights? Why do you support sending billions of $s to other countries who Trump “likes” while cutting funds to healthcare to all Americans? Why do you support funding ICE agents to rip apart families while taking money away from starving children? Why do you support the defense and protection of child ra****s?
These are all things that Trump is doing and you have no problem with.
Why?
LOL, Basic, there were many instances of “cheating”, i.e., illegal actions intended to deceive voters and suppress votes in the last election. You’re just uninformed, as usual.
Bend those Knees!
> Time to calm down
stfu, ah
You may trust the billionaires to do the right things. Lots of us don’t.
Smart people are a minority these days because there are more people on this continent that are not.
HATS – While I agree with you, I do hope it’s not the majority that are unintelligent. I mean, we do know at least 40% are simpletons, but truly hoping it’s not more. Even 40% is too much though.
The one good thing about MAGA is that is has really spotlighted the need for better education in this country. If we ever recover from this nightmare and good people are once again in charge of this country, let’s hope they recognize how critical the failure of basic education and critical thinking skills can be.
Police Arrested This Many People At The “No Kings” Rallies In 3 Major American Cities – no hints given?
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/heres-many-people-were-arrested-181805465.html
I really liked the trio of Tyrannosauruses as the last pic…
I’ll take safer streets , lower utility prices, peace in the Middle East, lower healthcare costs, lower drug prices, more domestic manufacturing, more respect for police, less indoctrination of our college students, lower taxes, smaller government, and a president who wakes up every day trying to make America great again rather than the last administration.
DAVID – none of that is happening. None of it. Nor will it with this bunch in charge. In fact the opposite of each is happening, except perhaps for drug prices, but we’ll still have to see.
And education is not “indoctrination” unless you’re scared and uneducated.
Well, I would say that in general “religious” “education” is indeed “indoctrination.” So, it kinda depends. Certainly public education is nothing like that.
So, I’m curious. Where did you get the stats behind all of your assertions? Not a single one is correct. In fact each is the exact opposite. Do you get paid by the word or the post? How do you even get up and tie your shoes? It doesn’t appear that you have enough sense to even do that.
That is the most ridiculous string of nonsense I’ve read here in a long time.
Republicans in congress have rolled over for Trump and effectively torched our constitution. GOP cowards!
Which stands in stark contrast to this warning…
A GOP group put out a letter signed by more than 200 Republ*cans who said another four years under T**** would “hurt real, everyday people and weaken our sacred institutions.” Excerpts below:
We are former national security and foreign policy officials who served in the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, and/or Donald Trump, or as Republican Members of Congress.
We have served in the White House, the Departments of Defense, Treasury, State, Justice, Homeland Security, Commerce, and other agencies and in Congress.
We believe that the President of the United States must be a principled, serious, and steady leader who can advance and defend American security and values, strengthen our alliances, and protect our democracy.
We firmly oppose the election of Donald Trump. As President, he promoted daily chaos in government, praised our enemies and undermined our allies, politicized the military and disparaged our veterans, prioritized his personal interest above American interests, and betrayed our values, democracy, and this country’s founding documents.
Those aren’t Rethuglicans in Congress.
Um, note that he wrote “Which stands in stark contrast” … that is, those Republicans took a position that is the opposite of the Rethuglicans in Congress.
In our view, by inciting the violent attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 and defending those who committed it, he has violated his oath of office and brought danger to our country.
As former Vice President Pence has said “anyone who puts himself over the Constitution should never be President of the United States.”
Donald Trump’s susceptibility to flattery and manipulation by Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, unusual affinity for other authoritarian leaders, contempt for the norms of decent, ethical and lawful behavior, and chaotic national security decision-making are dangerous qualities – as many honorable Republican colleagues and military officers who served in senior national security positions in his administration have frequently testified.
He is unfit to serve again as President, or indeed in any office of public trust.
We appreciate that many Republicans prefer Donald Trump to Kamala Harris, for a variety of reasons. We recognize and do not disparage their potential concerns, including about some of the positions advocated by the left wing of the Democratic party.
But any potential concerns pale in comparison to Donald Trump’s demonstrated chaotic and unethical behavior and disregard for our Republic’s time-tested principles of constitutional governance.
His unpredictable nature is not the negotiating virtue he extols. To the contrary, in matters of national security, his demeanor invites equally erratic behavior from our adversaries, which irresponsibly threatens reckless and dangerous global consequences.
In short, Donald Trump cannot be trusted “to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic . . . and bear true faith and allegiance to the same.”
——
A range of notable Republicans and conservatives/independents openly expressed opposition to former President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign for president of the United States:
Former Trump administration officials
Previous administration executive branch officials
U.S. senators
U.S. representatives
State and local officials
Former judicial officials
State and county judicial officials
Party officials
Other public figures
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Republicans_who_opposed_the_Donald_Trump_2024_presidential_campaign
https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2024/09/18/over-100-ex-gop-officials-endorse-harris-heres-the-full-list/
I might say they’ve gotten down on all 4s and have that rear end of theirs gazing at stars, waiting for the ochre mushroom of destiny to descend from the heavens and plug their tunnel of fear while proving their absolute fealty. That, or it’s all of those videos an photos he’s “procured” that’d send them to jail. Little MAGA Mikey always looks really scared that he’s not performing well enough on camera. I’ll be the orange one has at least a full shoe box with his name on it.
And now that it’s done….so what?
STEVE – if you think our fight is done then you don’t understand the resolve of true Americans.
Who knows–one thing I know for sure, you’ll cry about it.
TDS is hilarious to watch
Yes, Trump cult mind sheep are only working on about 3 cylinders in the brain. MAGA supporters would have followed Jim Jones to the jungle.
JIMBO – that’s really funny coming from the side who is saying Biden sent the FBI in on Jan 6 and blaming Biden for the Epstein files and basically still crying about Biden 100 times a day 24/7.
Yep, you literally suffer from it, not surprising considering “Jimbo” sounds like the name of a clown.