URBANA — Thousands of people peacefully protested outside the Champaign County Courthouse on Saturday as part of one of many “No Kings” rallies organized across the United States. The rallies, intentionally held on President Donald Trump’s birthday and the coinciding military parade in Washington, D.C., were held in protest of his actions that participants called “authoritarian.”
“We’re out here to sort of unequivocally state that no kings, by definition, means liberation for all,” said Derek Briles, an organizer with Champaign-Urbana’s chapter of the Party for Socialism and Liberation.
While the demonstration included support for many causes — ranging from immigrant and transgender rights to Palestinian liberation — those rallying shared a common sentiment: they were not happy with President Trump.
“I love this country,” said Paula Boyd, who attended the protest with her two children, her wife and her wife’s parents. “I think the Constitution is a perfect document, and I’m very fearful of what’s happening to it right now.”
The marching crowd carried signs with phrases like “ICE out” and “No Kings,” expressing anger at Trump’s campaign under his second term to carry out a mass deportation of those migrants without legal status. Some people carried effigies or posters with drawings of Trump as a king or a clown.
Over 2,000 “No Kings” protests were held in cities across the U.S. in response to his policies and executive orders, especially those targeting migrants.
While the protests had been planned since before anti-ICE demonstrations began in Los Angeles and other major U.S. cities, some said the two movements have reinforced each other’s messages.
“I really do think the events of the last week have really kind of shined a light on things for people in terms of what direction things are going,” said Boyd. “It’s a particularly poignant day to protest.”
The demonstration began with a rally and several speeches before a large portion of the crowd began to march through downtown Urbana. The march moved west on W Main Street before turning down Race Street and then on to E University Avenue.
Members with the organizations behind the rally, including Champaign County Indivisible, the Party for Socialism and Liberation and 50501, guided the protesters through the streets with vehicles, bikes and vests, keeping participants on one side of the road.
Thousands marched down N Vine Street and back up to the courthouse, continuing to rally before most of the crowd dispersed around 6:30 p.m.
Rachel Phillips is a member of 50501, which stands for 50 protests, 50 states, 1 movement. She said she has family and friends who are in the country on visas — and she fears for their safety.
“There’s never a day you don’t think about it,” Phillips said. “I have a family member that lives abroad now, and he could not come back for a funeral that we had for a family member, because there was a significant risk of him being detained or just him being stopped and being questioned.”
Many people attended the rally with their friends or family members, including Karla Macedo, a first-generation immigrant who lives in Urbana. She brought her husband and son to the rally.
“You know, I want to show by example for my son that we’re in the United States of America where we need to use our voice, and that is how we fight back,” she said.
Macedo said she thinks it is important that people speak for those who are currently living in fear of being deported and may not be able to attend a protest.
“In the U.S. we demand what is fair and with justice for all, and right now we are not seeing that,” she said. “This is a reflection of the people, and so it feels just very empowering and very refreshing and very powerful, because we all together are stronger.”
Click here to see a photo gallery of the ‘No Kings’ rally in Urbana.