UPDATED: Los Angeles Police officers tried to clear downtown protest crowds in the late afternoon on Saturday, as tensions escalated after a day of No Kings protests.
The LAPD said, “A DISPERSAL ORDER has been issued at Alameda South of Aliso North of Temple. A DISPERSAL ORDER has been issued on Los Angeles St between Aliso and Temple. People in the crowd are throwing rocks, bricks, bottles and other objects. Less lethal has been approved. Less lethal may cause discomfort and pain. It is advised that all persons leave the area.”
Authorities threw flash bangs and tear gas as they tried to disperse the crowd, according to ABC7. The crowds were being pushed away from the federal building.
PREVIOUSLY: Demonstrators filled streets and parks across the country on Saturday, taking part in a nationwide day of protests to counter the actions of the Trump administration and the president’s plans for a military parade this evening in Washington, D.C.
In downtown Los Angeles, which has become the epicenter of opposition to the administration’s immigration enforcement raids, thousands marched near City Hall, in one of a number of protests planned in the basin. In Santa Monica, demonstrators gathered in Palisades Park. One was spotted with a sign that read, “Santa Monica apologizes for Stephen Miller,” referring to the city native and Trump adviser who is the architect of the deportation strategy.
In West Hollywood, screenwriter Dustin Lance Black noted Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s move to strip Harvey Milk’s name from off of a naval ship. “That got me real angry too, but we are not going to fall for that trick. … It is the oldest trick in the book they’re trying to play. They are trying to piss us off, one group after the other, so we become myopic. We become interested only in ourselves. And we become divided.”
Black noted that Milk “understood that in order to win, in order to fight for a more equal country and world, we have to come together as coalitions united.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass urged protesters to be peaceful and “do not give the administration an excuse to intervene.”
Last weekend, Trump federalized the National Guard to send 4,000 to Los Angeles and other areas in the region to respond to demonstrations of ICE raids. He also ordered the deployment of 700 Marines.
Governor Gavin Newsom sued Trump, claiming that he was overstepping his authority and inflaming the situation, as some protesters earlier this week burned a vehicle and engaged in looting. In a speech earlier this week, Newsom warned that Trump’s actions in deploying the military were a prelude to further authoritarian actions.
Overshadowing the days events were the fatal shootings of Minnesota Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, in an attack at their home in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Park. Also shot were Minnesota Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette at their home in nearby Champlin, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said that the attacks “appears to be a politically motivated assassination.” He said that they were “cautiously optimistic” that the Hoffmans would survive.
Authorities said that they are trying to locate Vance Luther Boetler, 57, as a person of interest. The Minnesota State Patrol posted a picture of papers found in the assailant’s vehicle, with the words “NO KINGS.”
“Given the targeted shootings of state lawmakers overnight, we are asking the public to not attend today’s planned demonstrations across Minnesota out of an abundance of caution,” the department said in a statement.
In Philadelphia, where the flagship rally was held, the event opened with a moment of meditation and reflection to honor the victims of the Minnesota shootings. Speakers included Tim Snyder, the historian and author who has warned of the U.S. descending into an authoritarian state under Trump. Also speaking was Martin Luther King III, who said, “I can’t imagine what what my father or mother are thinking as we go through this period of history, beyond the fact that we must stay engaged and stay on the battlefield until true justice freedom and equality exists for all humankind.”
The protests were organized by a collection of dozens groups, including Indivisible, the ACLU and Public Citizen.
Organizers were intent on reclaiming patriotic symbols, with protesters unfurling a large American flag in downtown L.A. Saturday also is Flag Day.
In Philadelphia, many attending waved U.S. flags, while the event ended with a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
In his speech, Ezra Levin, co-executive director of Indivisible, noted that the U.S. flag was initially a symbol of defiance as the colonies revolted against King George. “It was a symbol of hope in the face of despair. They believed then as we believe now … courage is contagious. They raised the flag not just as a symbol of a nation but as a resistance to tyranny.”
Organizers purposely avoided planning events in the center of D.C., noting that “real power isn’t staged in Washington.” But there was a protest near the White House anyway, with demonstrators marching down 16th Street, displaying a large banner that read, “Trump Must Go Now.” They crowd chanted, “We refuse to accept a fascist America.” They made it to Lafayette Park in front of the White House, but much of the area has been sealed off by security fencing.
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