Demonstrators march around Pike Park to protest against President Trump and Republican leaders near the venue of the Republican convention at American Airlines Center, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki/The Dallas Morning News
Anti-Trump protesters set out for American Airlines Center on Thursday. Their march was halted hundreds of feet away, at a line of officers in riot gear and a tall security fence.
The march, organized by the Dallas Against the Trump Agenda Coalition, began at Pike Park in the early afternoon, a short walk from the arena. Scores of sign-toting demonstrators had gathered beneath the trees, seeking relief from the heat before setting out to protest the final day of the Republican midterm convention at the arena in Victory Park.
The group, an alliance of progressive, socialist and anti-war groups, marched on when they met the line of officers, with police monitoring the protest and temporarily closing roadways as demonstrators moved through Uptown. Many displayed their signs and banners at passing motorists. One sign called for voters to “make America honest again.” Another simply read, “Shame.”
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Live updates: Protesters gather in Dallas on last day of Republican midterm convention
Police officers detain a demonstrator during a march to protest against President Trump and Republican leaders that started from Pike Park near the venue of the Republican convention at American Airlines Center, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki/The Dallas Morning News
Demonstrators march around Pike Park to protest against President Trump and Republican leaders near the venue of the Republican convention at American Airlines Center, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki/The Dallas Morning News
Police officers watch demonstrators marching around Pike Park to protest against President Trump and Republican leaders near the venue of the Republican convention at American Airlines Center, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki/The Dallas Morning News
Police officers watch demonstrators marching around Pike Park to protest against President Trump and Republican leaders near the venue of the Republican convention at American Airlines Center, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki/The Dallas Morning News
A counter-protester interrupts the march as demonstrators marching around Pike Park to protest against President Trump and Republican leaders near the venue of the Republican convention at American Airlines Center, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki/The Dallas Morning News
Law enforcement officers keep an eye on protestors as they march along Harry Hines Boulevard against President Donald Trump’s administration on the final day of the Republican convention, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Shafkat Anowar/The Dallas Morning News
Protestors march along Harry Hines Boulevard against President Donald Trump’s administration on the final day of the Republican convention, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Shafkat Anowar/The Dallas Morning News
Dallas police later arrested two protesters near McKinnon and Payne streets after officers said they assaulted a counterprotester and blocked a roadway — accusations organizers pushed back on.
Xavier Velasquez, a spokesperson for the coalition, described the police response as obstructive but said he was otherwise satisfied with the demonstration. He said organizers had expected counterprotesters.
“We made the best of what we had,” Velasquez said after the march concluded. He disputed the police account of what led to the arrests.
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The demonstrations on the convention’s final day underscored the competing efforts — by Democrats, Republicans and activists on both sides — to define the political moment outside the American Airlines Center as the GOP seeks to hold Congress in November.
A separate rally was planned for later in the afternoon at Dallas City Hall, planned by Dallas County Democrats and Next Generation Action Network. Organizers are not planning for a march.
Related: Empty seats at the GOP midterm convention? Blame it on small bladders.
Police officers block a street as demonstrators marching around Pike Park to protest against President Trump and Republican leaders near the venue of the Republican convention at American Airlines Center, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki/The Dallas Morning News
Police spokesperson Corbin Rubinson said the incident at the Uptown march leading to the arrests remained under investigation. The counterprotester did not require medical treatment, he said.
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Before the march, demonstrators gathered beneath the trees at Pike Park. Nearby, a handful of counterprotesters used a megaphone to heckle the crowd, at times shouting anti-LGBTQ slurs.
Election concerns brought Everett Upshaw, 61, to the protest.
“I’m really concerned about our democracy,” Upshaw said. “If we’re not going to fight now, it’s going to be too late.”
Other demonstrators focused on encouraging people to become more involved in civic life.
“Democracy is not a spectator sport,” said Tim Yager, a Dallas resident. “You have to be engaged. You’ve got to participate.”
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Later on in the march, after a roughly 20-minute standstill with police, protesters were directed onto Wolf Street and eventually returned to Pike Park.
Organizers addressed the crowd from a gazebo. Rick Majumdar, a leader with the coalition, said they had shortened the planned march route because of the heat and estimated at least 200 people participated.
A counter-protester, right, confronts a demonstrator during a rally to protest against President Trump and Republican leaders at Pike Park near the venue of the Republican convention at American Airlines Center, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Dallas.
Chitose Suzuki/The Dallas Morning News
“The message I hope that march sends people is that the only way to stop the Trump agenda is to get organized,” Majumdar said. “The march is only one part of what we’re going to do.”
The protesters did not reach the arena. But at times, the convention came to them: Large charter buses carrying attendees rolled past, drawing jeers from some in the crowd.
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Related: Here’s the program for Day 2 of the Republican midterm convention in Dallas