‘No Kings’ march draws thousands around Bay Area

Protesters gathered in public places in San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Sonoma, and several other communities, objecting to actions taken by the federal government that protesters called authoritarian and anti-democratic.

Protesters held signs and rallied against actions by Trump including the dozens of executive orders issued since he became president, raids and illegal detentions by federal immigration authorities, attacks on the federal judiciary, attempts to punish law firms and higher education institutions, and targeting local officials for arrest in rhetoric and action.

The protests were coordinated on a trio of overlapping occasions: it was Flag Day on Saturday, but it was also the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army, and Trump’s own birthday. He planned a military parade in Washington, D.C. to celebrate the day.

His expansion of executive power also comes a year after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that presidents are entitled to broad immunity from prosecution for official acts they take in office.

The president’s actions have ranged from challenging political norms to breaking federal law and have brought hundreds of lawsuits from civil rights groups and those targeted by the administration, including lawyers, legal immigrants, Harvard University, transgender military members, and others.

The San Francisco Department of Emergency Management estimated tens of thousands of people turned out at the Civic Center in San Francisco on Saturday at about 1 p.m. A department spokesperson said the demonstration was largely peaceful with “limited incidents of violence and vandalism” and no serious injuries. The protest was winding down as of about 3:30 p.m.

The day’s demonstrations in the city were organized by the organizations Indivisible SF and 50501 and started with a gathering at Ocean Beach’s Sunset Dunes Park, where the group formed a “human banner.”

Protesters then gathered at Mission Dolores Park, in the Mission District, at about 11:30 a.m. before marching over a mile to the Civic Center, where a large crowd gathered for a rally on the steps of City Hall.

Video shared on social media from state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, showed a massive crowd of protesters marching up Dolores Street, some with American flags, and many with signs denouncing authoritarianism and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and supporting immigrants and the U.S. Constitution.

The administration has challenged federal law in multiple ways, including, most recently, taking command of the California National Guard over the objection of Gov. Gavin Newsom. A federal judge ruled that the administration acted illegally and ordered the command returned to the governor. An appeals court stayed the ruling while the case moves forward, with a hearing set for Tuesday.

Trump has also withheld and attempted to withhold funding from states and federal programs that was already appropriated by Congress. The administration has arrested, detained and deported legal residents and U.S. citizens. His administration sought to delete online health data, take away Harvard University’s tax-exempt status, punish law firms for work they did with Democratic clients and other actions that have broken federal law.

His administration has threatened to jail local leaders of sanctuary cities and has arrested a local judge in Milwaukee, the mayor of Newark, N.J., and a U.S. Congresswoman, and is attempting to prosecute them for separate incidents involving immigration enforcement. U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., was also thrown to the ground and handcuffed by FBI agents during a press conference held by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security secretary on Thursday.