Updated March 28, 2026 — CBS/AP
Mass demonstrations against the war in Iran and President Trump’s policies drew millions on Saturday at “No Kings” rallies across the United States and in Europe, organizers said. U.S. organizers said previous waves of the movement attracted more than 5 million people in June and 7 million in October, and estimated at least 8 million people took part in more than 3,300 events worldwide on Saturday.
Minnesota served as the movement’s flagship event, with thousands filling the Capitol lawn and adjacent streets in St. Paul. Some attendees carried upside-down U.S. flags, a historic signal of distress. The program featured Bruce Springsteen performing “Streets of Minneapolis,” a song he wrote after the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents; Springsteen criticized the deaths and praised continued resistance to U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement.
Speakers and performers also included Joan Baez, Jane Fonda and Sen. Bernie Sanders, alongside activists, labor leaders and elected officials. Organizers estimated the St. Paul rally drew more than 200,000 people, topping turnout for the 2017 Women’s March. St. Paul police closed several nearby streets. The demonstrations were mostly peaceful, though authorities reported some arrests.
Large actions were reported in other U.S. cities. In Los Angeles, officers used tear gas near a federal detention center and the LAPD later arrested people for failing to disperse. Denver police declared an unlawful assembly after a small group blocked a roadway, deployed smoke canisters and detained at least eight people, with a ninth held later. San Diego officials said roughly 40,000 people marched there.
Rallies stretched from New York City and Philadelphia to small towns such as Driggs, Idaho. Demonstrations in Manhattan and downtown Philadelphia shut roadways. Indivisible Chicago and the ACLU of Illinois coordinated a major gathering in Grant Park. Protests were also reported across Texas and in Detroit-area communities, with at least 40 events scheduled in Southeast Michigan.
The White House dismissed the nationwide protests as driven by “leftist funding networks” and said they lacked broad public support. White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson called the events “Trump Derangement Therapy Sessions” and suggested reporters were among the main people covering them.
Participants voiced a range of grievances beyond immigration enforcement, including opposition to the war in Iran and to rollbacks of transgender rights. In Washington, hundreds marched past the Lincoln Memorial onto the National Mall, carrying signs reading “Put down the crown, clown” and “Regime change begins at home,” ringing bells, playing drums and chanting “No kings.” Some demonstrators included performers and satirical groups mocking ICE.
Organizers said about two-thirds of RSVPs came from outside major metropolitan areas, including communities in conservative-leaning states such as Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, South Dakota and Louisiana, as well as suburban areas in Pennsylvania, Georgia and Arizona.
Indivisible co-executive director Ezra Levin said “No Kings” events were held in more than a dozen other countries, from Europe to Latin America and Australia. In nations with monarchies, some rallies were billed as “No Tyrants.” In Rome, thousands marched to criticize Premier Giorgia Meloni’s government after a failed judiciary referendum and to condemn Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran, calling for “a world free from wars.” In Paris, a few hundred people—mostly Americans living in France alongside French labor unions and rights groups—gathered at the Bastille. In London, protesters against the Iran war carried banners reading “Stop the far right” and “Stand up to Racism.” Paris organizer Ada Shen said she protested “all of Trump’s illegal, immoral, reckless, and feckless, endless wars.”
Across cities, the demonstrations combined music, speeches and street actions. Most gatherings remained peaceful, though clashes and arrests occurred in some places. Organizers and civil liberties groups said the large turnout was intended to demonstrate widespread opposition to administration policies and to encourage ongoing public resistance.