The No Kings movement brought 800 Islanders to Five Corners in Vineyard Haven this past weekend to protest the policies of the current presidential administration. They represented just a small fraction of the 8 million people across the country who shouted, “No kings, no kings!” from the front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., to the Minnesota State Capitol in Saint Paul, to New York’s Times Square; expats in France even protested at the Place de la Bastille in Paris.
The local rally took place from 1:30 to 3 pm on Saturday, and exemplified freedom of expression and the right to petition through creative signs such as “Impeach, remove, convict,” “Our Constitution rules! Not the wannabe king,” and “Remember, only you can stop facism.” Signs featured either declaratory statements that meant to codify the U.S. as a democracy, not a monarchy or tyranny, as many at the protest see the Trump administration, while others called out for activism (“Please stay engaged”). And some even referenced history — one quoted a former North Dakota senator from the Vietnam War era: “I’m tired of old men dreaming up wars for young men to fight.”
That particular sign called out the current conflict in Iran and suggested a link between the two wars, set over a half-century apart, through a reference to the antiwar movement of the 1960s and ’70s. But while there are some similarities, the conflicts are widely dissimilar — guerilla warfare versus surprise airstrikes, violence justified by federal officials over fears of communism versus fears of nuclear weapons, escalation under a Democratic president (Lyndon B. Johnson) versus a Republican.
The goals of the rallies are also largely different. Protests are a boon of a democratic society and a vital expression of democracy, which requires civic participation. And while the Vietnam antiwar movement found success after almost a decade, whether these rallies can create any real change remains to be seen.
There are now, as in the 1960s and ’70s, widespread protests; indeed, many who attended the local rally on the Island said they had participated in other protests, such as against the Vietnam War. In the 20th century, a huge focus for protesters, among civil rights and criticism of the domestic nuclear program, was the antiwar movement and draft resistance, which centered around one conflict. But in the past year, these “No Kings” rallies aren’t directed solely on the war in Iran, which only officially started a month ago, but are a larger expression of dissent against the overall policies of the Trump administration. Due to the multipurpose nature of today’s protests, there doesn’t seem to be a clear goal, or rather, a clear win. Because, at the end of the day, the protesters champion democracy, which means either they must wait out Trump, hope he’s impeached and, this time, removed from office, or pray he succumbs to pressure to reform his many policies that have alienated them.
The list of complaints against Trump are numerous — from authoritarian tendencies to harsh immigration policies to what many see as a war of choice in Iran. So what’s the fix? A self-declared truce or a quickly arranged “peace” agreement between the U.S. and Iran won’t solve all of the complex problems that are part of this moment in history. So far, federal officials haven’t said that U.S. ground troops will be deployed to Iran, but 3,500 additional soldiers arrived in the Middle East earlier this week. Trump addressed the nation in a 19-minute speech Wednesday night to deliver an update on the war. This is a live story that continues to unfold. But what is known now is that Trump estimated that the war would end within three weeks.
The peace movement in the ’60s and ’70s was seen as successful, and was able to shift public perception of the war in Vietnam, especially through prominent media coverage. Could these “No Kings” rallies garner the same effect? (A White House spokesperson told the BBC that the only people who care about the recent rallies “are the reporters who are paid to cover them.”)
The truth is, numbers are great, and some current-day rallies already attract more people than those in the ’60s and ’70s. It’s probably not, however, enough to create real change.
For Indivisible Martha’s Vineyard, as well as the other Island groups behind the local rally, the protests are the main event — one that can be photographed and reported on by local newspapers — important as a way to highlight the many challenges and injustices that face the country under the Trump administration, which has openly defied the Constitution and, in some cases, the rule of law. But the real work comes later. Robert Laskowski, a member of Indivisible M.V., in a speech to the crowd on Saturday, compared this administration to a storm: “We’re floating in a sea of lies. As Vineyarders, we are used to storms. We know how to take care of ourselves, and we, very importantly, know how to take care of each other.”
He went on to say that Islanders can “calm the seas and clean up the storm damage” by “being active every day in whatever way we can.” There’s a sense of patriotic pride in the right to protest, and Islanders aren’t strangers to civic activism, exemplified in the abolitionist Methodists of the 1840s and ’50s and the Garden Club that campaigned to eradicate billboards, or road signage of a certain size, in the 1920s and ’30s. Bowdoin Van Riper, research librarian for the Martha’s Vineyard Museum, said that five middle-class white women from the Island and members of the local chapter of the NAACP drove to North Carolina to aid Black civil rights protesters; they participated in a demonstration, were arrested, and spent the night in jail.
Call Island and state representatives, vote, speak the truth, and take care of ourselves, Laskowski said: “We can smile. We can walk. We can play with our kids and grandkids. We can play pickleball, sit on the beach, whatever brings us joy. We must not permit Trumpism to rob us of a joyful life.”
There’s no way to tell whether or not these protests can, through political pressure, create change quickly. The problem is that protesters call out a leader whose spokesperson told the BBC the protests are “Trump derangement therapy sessions.” We disagree. The rallies, though an opportunistic photo-op that shouldn’t overshadow the real work, are an important expression of dissent, and we plan to continue to cover and document them regardless in our public service role in a participatory democracy.
The absurdist round of “No Kings” rallies this past weekend helped everyone watching delineate the world into two camps: the serious and informed versus the unserious, ill-informed when it comes to rogue regimes which threaten the here and now, the near term and the long term future of the world. Iran’s rulers proved themselves to be crazy and fixated on acquiring nuclear weapons. For the people who previously chose not to see the brutality of the regime, the regime helped all but the resolutely blinded to see how evil the regime is. The “Trump Derangement Syndrome”-afflicted people have seen their illness now manifest in the inability to distinguish between the purely evil and existential threat that Iran posed to the entire world from the actions of a popularly elected president .The result needed in the war has not yet been achieved. But if President Trump delivers it, only his critics incapable of basic objectivity will deny the significance of his order to take down the regime that has bedeviled the world for almost a half century.
Were the Vietnam War protests absurd?
Effective?
Andy–Stating that people who disagree with you are unserious and ill-informed is not only wrong but sanctimonious. Do you really think that people protesting about the brutality
of ice, blatant racism, and the callous disregard for the less fortunate are unserious ? Those who think we should abide by the rule of law, and provide health care services to our citizens rather than bomb foreign countries and summarily execute people in international waters that “MAY” be transporting drugs are ill-informed ? Are we to sit back and cheer our sports teams on while the wanna be king rolls back decades of environmental regulations with the stroke of a sharpie ? How about objecting to a megalomaniac who Insults and mocks our closest allies , imposes arbitrary tariffs on every country in the world , and has a tantrum when they don’t help us out with an unnecessary war that they never wanted to have anything to do with? He can’t spin our “winning” to anyone but his unserious and ill-informed cultists sheep . NO- Andy– that’s not how a healthy republic operates. And Mr. McCarthy- Do you really think we are so stupid as to not recognize what election denying is ? Who won in 2020 ?
The great thing about America is that we all have the great equalizer, our vote
No matter how educated or enlightened you think you are compared to other people, you only get one vote
No matter how much money or influence you possess, you only get one vote
No matter how young and idealistic or how old and wise, you only get one vote
Democracy states that the majority of everyone is what rules
The bottom line is that although some people labeled Trump as the most evil person and convicted him in a Kangaroo court, the MAJORITY of all of us felt he was the best choice for this country
If you don’t accept that are you not an election denier?
Most of America is wondering what exactly you are protesting
Dressing up in inflatable costumes and carrying signs with hateful rhetoric doesn’t help if you want people to consider your argument
Oh, John, I seriously doubt that “most of America” is wondering what the protestors are doing. Have to say that a person who offers the kind of “hateful” language our president did on Easter Sunday is not fit to be the leader of the free world. Mind, my own language is often pretty salty, but the only exalted position I hold is the mother of two grown children who make me proud daily. Likely your post was written before that extremely regrettable incident.
I think John was talking about the importance of individual votes in our democracy, not how much you hate Trump and believe everyone else does as well.
Sara there are alot of great videos where protesters are asked ” what exactly is trump doing that makes him a king?”
The amount of people who have no answers is astounding
Most get frustrated and then other people come in to shut down the interview
Not only are most Americans probably wondering what they are protesting, it seems even the protesters themselves are somewhat confused
So if someone objects to the president using vulgar language at an Easter event at the white house, that means they hate him ? He then goes on to tell children about how the president before him couldn’t sign his name and had people follow him around with a “big machine” — the autopen– . You and I both know that’s a lie.. Is it ok to lie to children like that ? Or does anyone who thinks that is a bit weird hates trump ? In my opinion, anyone who lies to children, and uses vulgar language in a public event at the white house is not fit for office. But I am happy that he ended yet another war. Anyone who can single handedly reduce the number of wars by 300 or maybe 1500 percent ( such a spectacular accomplishment that I can’t even do the math on that one) can get a pass on most any deplorable thing they do from the deplorable sheep that follow him around. I’m gonna vote in November– I hope you do also ..
Speaking to your vote counting. The Electoral College: If you are in a State, like the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, which votes predominately one way, your vote in the opposite direction of the way the State predominately votes, does not count for the Presidential candidates you voted for. Trying to say this concisely is difficult.
Don, both of your replies do the same thing: evade the point, inflate the rhetoric, and then lecture everyone else about democracy. No one said people are “unserious” for caring about ICE, racism, healthcare, or Trump’s behavior. The actual issue was whether these protests, as currently practiced, produce concrete political results. But instead of addressing that, you lunge into a full funhouse-circus routine of Sharpies, sheep, kings, and cultists.
And your election point is just as slippery: acknowledging that Trump won in 2024 does not make someone an “election denier” about 2020. Those are separate questions, and blurring them together is either careless or convenient. You keep turning the mirror until everything is grotesquely out of proportion, then calling that clarity. It isn’t. It’s theater.
I would not attend one of these protest even if you did try to pay me.
The amount of people I encounter in my day to day life that are openly willing to say that they hope or wish harm on President Trump is deplorable. They sometimes even go as far as to vocalize that they wish his life had ended in Butler, PA or that someone will get a clean shot at him soon. I wish the press could be honest about the level at which this sick and twisted sentiment is held by people on the left. Sometimes I feel as though liberal whites are willing to share it with me as a mature Black man more than they would otherwise speak it in public, because they assume, based on my appearance, that I would agree with them. That is a racist assumption on their part. I stand with Charlie Kirk and do not wish violence, political or otherwise, to fall on anyone.