Historic Day of Protest Against Tyranny

On June 14, historic protests and actions took place across the United States on the occasion of No Kings Day which the U.S. state celebrates as "Flag Day." It is also the day that criminal President Donald Trump held a military parade in Washington, DC to celebrate his 79th birthday on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the Army. The event was enforced by thousands of officers, 18 miles of anti-scalable fencing, surveillance drones, counter-snipers and many other security features, news media reported.

The parade, said to have cost some $45 million to put on, was a dismal failure with only a few thousand people in the stands, far short of the 250,000 expected. Meanwhile, more than 13 million people are estimated to have participated in the more than 2,300 protests held across the country that day, appropriately called No King's Day.

Everywhere, the people have risen to protect their fellow workers, neighbours, families, friends and communities against the raids of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency and their goons for whom no crime and abuse is too much. They stand dignified and united as one under the slogans Immigrants Belong! No Deportations! So too they are standing with all those whose rights are under attack, against the dismantling of education, health care and social services and against the attacks on the public workers who provide them.

Referring to the heroic resistance of the people of Los Angeles against the massive police and military presence in their city called in by Donald Trump to enforce stepped-up immigration raids that began on June 6, the actions demanded Troops Out of LA! Participants also highlighted the Palestinian people's resistance. They demanded that the political prisoners abducted for organizing in support of Palestine in the U.S. be released and called on the U.S. and Israel to End the Genocide Now! They also denounced U.S.-led aggression and war, such as Israel's criminal attack on Iran the day before.

The Facebook group Alt National Park Service, who call themselves "the official 'Resistance' team of U.S. National Park Service," kept a running total of the number of people taking part across the country. They stated, "We're honoured to announce a final count of 13.14 million in attendance across 2,300+ protests nationwide." It is one of the largest protests ever in U.S. history.

In New York, 200,000 people rallied. In Pittsburgh, as many as 10,000 people denounced Trump's tyranny. Participants in Philadelphia reported nearly 100,000 people in the streets, with one saying, "The message was clear. No Kings. Abolish ICE. No endless wars." Some 100,000 people took part in Chicago. In Wisconsin, tens of thousands took part in Madison and Milwaukee. In Las Vegas, some 8,000 people took part. In San Diego, some 100,000 people took part. In Idaho, 4,000 people took their stand at the capitol building in Boise. The march in Seattle stretched for nearly 2.5 kilometres. In small communities across the country, hundreds and even thousands came out to proudly take their stand and be counted on the historic day of action.

No Kings Day actions were also held in 20 countries, including Canada, in solidarity with the people fighting in the U.S.

The anti-war organization Veterans for Peace pointed out, "Instead of funding health care, the Trump administration is sending the National Guard and federal agents in full military gear to violently suppress protests and kidnap our neighbors, coworkers, and loved ones. Instead of funding housing, the Trump administration is sending billions of taxpayer dollars to Israel to carry out genocide against the Palestinian people. Instead of funding child care, Trump is living out his authoritarian dream to throw a garish military parade on his birthday like an entitled little boy."

On June 13, Veterans for Peace held a sit-in on the steps of the Capitol Building in Washington, DC, while another group of veterans protested in front of the Supreme Court building. They demanded that "the military get off our city streets from LA to DC, and taxpayer money be directed towards real investments in housing, health care, and food -- not political stunts or militarism." Some 60 veterans and military family members were arrested and treated brutally for allegedly crossing a police line.

The June 14 No Kings Day events and ongoing actions to oppose ICE and all the agencies involved in the immigration raids represent the people's rejection of the coup of the oligarchs who want to restructure the state and remove all fetters to their rule, so as to be able to seize federal funds and put federal agencies and the military at their direct disposal.

Veterans for Peace held a sit-in on the steps of the Capitol Building in Washington, DC, June 13, 2025

Evidence of paltry attendance at Trump's parade

Courageous Resistance in Los Angeles Against Police and Military Power of U.S. State

Los Angeles, No Kings Day, June 14, 2025

The tone for the June 14 No Kings Day was set by the courageous resistance of the people of Los Angeles to the abductions and deportations and occupation of their city by federalized National Guard and Marines. Mass protests by hundreds and now tens of thousands of people have been underway in Los Angeles since June 6. The response of the people of Los Angeles to multiple raids by ICE and the deployment of National Guard, deputized to come under direct federal authority, and also the U.S. Marines to crush their resistance has inspired the people of the entire country who have been fighting the abductions and deportation in their own right. Mass actions in solidarity with Los Angeles and against ICE raids taking place elsewhere are also ongoing across the country.

People are speaking out in their own name in the most cogent manner. They are defending the rights they are fighting for without equivocation, by virtue of being citizens and residents of the United States. An important stand is also the refutation of the argument of the state that the military are duty bound to follow the orders of their Commander in Chief whereas, in fact, they swear an oath to defend the Constitution which the Commander in Chief is violating. The choice is not between their military duty and the people's movement but to join the movement to defend the rights as stipulated in the Constitution.

The resistance is also marked by the exemplary courage of the U.S. working class which is confronting the armed might of the state, defending their communities no matter what.Their militancy in the face of the increasingly brutal and militarized attacks by ICE, along with the police, National Guard and now the Marines, inspires the people throughout the United States to stand up courageously in defence of the rights of all. It shows the entire world what the U.S. working class is made of, providing them with hope and inspiration that the nightmare all countries are living under the weight of the anti-social restructuring of states by narrow private interests, accompanied by wanton slaughter of hundreds and thousands of people in various countries, will be defeated.

The pitched battles being waged in Los Angeles are part of protests and actions by communities across the U.S. ever since stepped-up ICE raids began under the second Trump administration. Since June 6, more than 300 people have been detained by ICE in Los Angeles, while more than 850 people have been arrested at the protests.

Trump has ordered the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to work with ICE in attacking, detaining, and deporting immigrant workers and families. The FBI is independent of any other agency, and the ATF and DEA are part of the Justice Department, while ICE is part of Homeland Security. Trump is working to establish his sole authority over these forces and put in place different norms and standards for their activities.

By deploying the National Guard and now the Marines, some 5,000 troops altogether, to enforce immigration raids in Los Angeles, Trump is also trying to change established norms and violate laws with respect to the deployment of the military within the U.S. The Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 prohibits the use of federal military forces "to execute the law" unless the Constitution or Congress authorize it. That means the federal military cannot, for example, search, seize, arrest, apprehend, stop and frisk, surveil, pursue, interrogate or investigate civilians. Both the National Guard and Marines have already detained multiple civilians.

Furthermore, the National Guard are typically under the control of state governors, and not the U.S. President. The National Guard can be deployed under presidential authority (federalization), in the event of invasion or rebellions and in overseas wars, as in Iraq and Afghanistan most recently. However, their deployment domestically for law enforcement typically requires invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807 that authorizes an exception to the Posse Comitatus Act, which Trump has so far not done.

The deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles is a major point of contention between Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom, who rejects this use of the Guard and sought an emergency court order to block its deployment. On June 12, San Francisco-based U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, in a 36-page ruling, found that Trump's deployment of the Guard was unlawful and ordered that their control be returned to Governor Newsom. Breyer wrote that the presence of the troops in the city was itself inflaming tensions with protesters, adding that "The Court is troubled by the implication inherent in Defendants' argument that protest against the federal government, a core civil liberty protected by the First Amendment, can justify a finding of rebellion."

The Trump administration immediately appealed the judge's order, calling it "an extraordinary intrusion on the President's constitutional authority as Commander in Chief." Later that day, a U.S. appeals court put in place an administrative stay that permits President Trump to maintain control over the National Guard for the time being. The appeals court convened on June 17 to consider the Trump administration's request to block Breyer's order while litigation in the case continues. The appeals court has yet to make ruling.

Deployment of 700 Marines to Los Angeles was authorized by Trump on June 9, "to protect federal property and personnel, including federal immigration agents," the Associated Press reported. This is also part of Trump's plan to illegally use the military inside the country, both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border and conduct additional aggression against Mexico, Canada, Panama, Greenland, and more. AP reported that the Pentagon was "scrambling" to establish rules of engagement against U.S. citizens on U.S. soil.

Use of the military against the people defending their rights constitutes tyranny, something the Constitution is supposed to prevent but clearly does not. These actions by the Trump administration lay the groundwork for declaring that the protest movement of the peoples across the United States is a rebellion which can be suppressed with the use of force. The situation underscores the urgent need for organized resistance and empowerment. Democratic political arrangements must empower the people.

Stand with the U.S. Working Class and People Fighting for the Rights of All!

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