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Tens of thousands of New Jersey residents are expected to join millions of other Americans at “No Kings” rallies planned across the nation on Saturday, Oct. 18, to protest President Donald Trump and his administration’s policies.
The movement’s name, “No Kings,” reflects the idea that the U.S. is a democracy and not governed by a king. The rallies planned for Saturday will protest what some describe as the Trump administration’s corruption, abuse of power and attacks on democracy.
Millions of Americans participated in the first “No Kings” protests in June, which took place on the same day a military parade was held in Washington, D.C., celebrating Trump’s birthday and the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary.
Who is organizing the ‘No Kings’ protests?
The “No Kings” protests are organized across the nation by a large coalition of organizations and grassroots groups, including the American Federation of Teachers, Public Citizen, Indivisible, MoveOn and the American Civil Liberties Union.
Amol Sinha, executive director of ACLU of New Jersey, said his organization is involved in sponsoring several “No Kings” rallies across the Garden State.
“We are engaging in one of the greatest traditions of our democracy, which is to assemble freely and speak out against the issues that the Trump administration and others are causing in our country,” he said.
Sinha said many New Jersey residents are eager to exercise their First Amendment rights against the current administration’s policies.
“This is something that has been a tried-and-true practice of our democracy, it’s actually fundamental to who we are as a country, the right to protest is something that we cannot give up,” he said.
He said the ACLU has been fighting on all fronts with the Trump administration, including having filed over 150 legal actions to protect the rights of immigrants, the First Amendment and due process rights.