CROWD MANAGEMENT: Organizers gave out limited wristbands to make sure Liberty Plaza didn’t exceed its capacity of 5,000. Thousands of other protesters filled the Capitol steps and street.

Outside the Georgia Capitol, over 8,000 people gathered in protest, with 3,000 people standing in streets, and Liberty Plaza at maximum capacity. Their goal? To show President Donald Trump their demand for “No Kings” in the United States. 

Caroline Stover, a volunteer with the Indivisible Georgia Coalition, spoke at the protest. She said the size of the crowd was energizing. 

“It gives me chills,” Stover said. “It really gives me chills, and it’s what we all need to see. Sometimes we feel like we’re alone in this, watching the news. We feel powerless. But the point is, when you see a crowd like this, we know the power is here. It’s not in Washington. It’s right here.”

On June 14, in celebration of both Trump’s 79th birthday and the military’s 250th anniversary, a military parade was held in Washington, D.C., which included 6,600 soldiers, as well as other military vehicles. The No Kings organizers argued that this portrayed Trump as a monarch, rather than a president, and organized the protest to show nationwide resistance during the parade. 

Teacher and protester Alicia Parker said it was frustrating that the parade, which was projected to cost up to $45 million, was paid for by tax dollars. 

“He’s using taxpayer money to throw himself a parade today,” Parker said. “That’s not what taxpayer money is for.”

Across the country, there were 2,100 protests with more than five million participants. The No Kings Day protest was the largest protest against Trump since his return to office. Research has shown it only takes 3.5% of the population protesting to create serious change, and on June 14, around 1.5% of the population came out.

“I think the Trump administration has a habit of putting blinders on,” Stover said. “They don’t listen or look or understand anyone that is not in their own little inner circle. What they need to notice is that they’re on trial. This is the court of public opinion here today, and we will not stand for what’s going on, and we’ll continue to stand up in huge numbers. If Trump and his cronies continue to ignore those numbers of people who are raising their voices and asking for change, then yeah, they’re on the wrong side of history.”

Ken Kemp, the husband of state senator Rashawn Kemp, said the magnitude of protesters shows a sense of unity amongst Americans. He said he is grateful people care enough to go out of their way and protest.

“It shows that a lot of people are on the same page,” Kemp said. “I love to see the support from different people. This is a Saturday morning; you could be doing anything right now: chilling at your pool, hanging out or still in bed, but people have come out in support to say, ‘no kings’. This is what the United States is all about, all of us, Black, white, whatever your heritage may be, sexuality, it doesn’t matter.”

Speaker Noël Heatherland has been involved with activism since 2016 and is currently the statewide organizing manager for Georgia Equality, an advocacy group for Georgia’s LGBTQ+ community. They spoke on behalf of the organization on Saturday, educating the crowd about healthcare for transgender people.

“It’s probably one of the largest crowds, if not the largest crowd I’ve ever spoken to,” Heatherland said. “I’m really grateful to be able to get our message out about trans healthcare and trans bodily autonomy to a larger crowd because even within progressive communities, a lot of times people don’t understand trans people or know trans people. Helping to educate folks is something that I really value.”

DRIVERS SUPPORT: Following the protest, the crowds left in large groups. Cars driving by honked in support. (Fairlie Mercer)

The protests in LA erupted due to anger concerning the recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. Since Trump’s inauguration in January, there has been an 807% increase in the deportation of immigrants with no criminal history. Parker believes this highlights the need to reform U.S. policies surrounding immigration.  

“It means reform is necessary, the policies are absolutely in need of change,” Parker said.  “Breaking up families is unacceptable, taking children, taking people who have been in this country for decades and are contributing members of society who have done nothing wrong.”

The day after the protest, Trump called on ICE to deliver “the single largest mass deportation program in history.” This was after Stephen Miller, Trump’s White House deputy chief of staff, said ICE would target 3,000 arrests per day, up from 650 per day during the first few months of his administration.

“They’re beautiful, smart people coming to America and trying to get away from persecution,” protester Michelle Nash said. “Isn’t that what we’re all about? We’re supposed to be a melting pot and a safe haven. We’re supposed to represent democracy to the world, and then we’re turning around and saying, ‘but not you, because you have brown skin.’ Look, I have goosebumps. I’m so angry at what he’s doing and the hate that he’s been sowing for years.”

Currently, Trump’s mass deportation has a net positive approval rating. However, after witnessing a doctor’s choice to leave after years of battling to gain citizenship, Parker believes the system is inadequate. 

“He was a contributing member to this country and became a citizen,” Parker said. “It took him 10 years, and they wouldn’t approve of his children and wife, who would also have been a contributing member, she was a scientist. So he left. We lost a good person because the system is broken.”

Nash said her son-in-law has been in the process of immigrating legally, but has faced additional challenges since Trump has been in office.

“My son-in-law is Mexican, and he’s been trying to go the legal route, and now there’s restrictions being put on,” Nash said. “He’s a freaking engineer with skill at the MIT equivalent in Mexico. He’s married to my daughter, and he’s a wonderful man. It’s sick what Trump is doing to America.”

Justine Jacobs,* who marched and protested alongside Parker, said she has seen the challenges of the American immigration system through a friend. 

“The legal process to get into the US takes decades,” Jacobs said. “I had a friend, it took [her] two years to do all the paperwork, thousands of dollars for one person. And when she got through all of that, they said, ‘All right, your date to talk with the embassy is in 20 years.’ She had already paid out her money. Anybody who’s living on one dollar a day, they can’t wait 20 years and pay out thousands per person.”

According to 2023 data from the Vera Institute of Justice, immigrants comprise 18% of the labor force in Atlanta’s metro area, and over half of them are potentially at risk of deportation. Protester Nick Scheidly said immigrants are integral to the Atlanta community.

“They work everywhere,” Scheidly said. “They’re in construction, they’re in hotels, they’re in hospitality. They’re at Target, they’re at Walmart. They’re everywhere you go. You don’t know if somebody is an immigrant or if they’re legal, or if they’re not legal, they’re just trying to make a living and serve their community, just like everybody who was born here, there’s no difference.”