More than 100,000 descended on St. Paul for ‘No Kings’ flagship rally
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Around 100,000 attended the St. Paul flagship “No Kings” rally, according to numbers reported by the Minnesota State Patrol. Organizers of the event said they think the number of attendees is closer to 200,000.
Over 3,200 events were scheduled in every U.S. state — and most continents — to demonstrate against the Trump administration. About 100 events were planned in Minnesota alone.
‘No Kings’ rally in St. Cloud
In St. Cloud, thousands of people lined Division Street in front of the public library. Some carried signs in opposition to the Trump administration and federal immigration policy.
Laura Hermann and her husband Joe attended from nearby Sartell.
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“We’re excited to be here, just because we’re not happy with everything that's going on in the administration. I feel that people are being selected because of their color. That I think is wrong. I think the ICE movement has separated families and are abusive,” she said.
Mary Johnson moved from Minneapolis to Richmond, a small town west of St. Cloud, five years ago. She said with everything that happened recently with ICE in Minnesota, she felt like she had to show up.
“I don’t like where we’re headed as a country. It’s really important to me that we understand that, you know, we have somebody in power who would, who would be a king if he could. And I just want to say, ‘No,’” she said.
St. Paul live updates
4:55 p.m.: Rally wraps up
The “No Kings” flagship rally at the Capitol ended just before 5 p.m.
4:25 p.m.: Flanagan and Ellison say justice is coming
Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan said she is fighting to avenge Minnesota, and bring justice. But she said she recognizes that the state will never be the same after the surge.
“Renee Good should be alive. Alex Pretti should be alive. We say their names, we honor their memories and we turn our grief into action,” she said. “The work is not done and the crisis is not over. And some of us will never be whole again.”
Attorney General Keith Ellison said justice is not optional, and that accountability is coming.
“You can only defeat tyranny if your love of freedom is so great you will risk what you have to for your neighbors,” he said.
4:05 p.m.: Joan Baez and Maggie Rogers sing together, introduce Singing Resistance
Singer-songwriters Joan Baez and Maggie Rogers sang “The Times They Are A-Changin,’” a Bob Dylan song that Baez said she sang for the first time at a protest with Martin Luther King Jr.
“I am honored to be standing in resistance with all of you today in this city on this day in this moment,” Baez said. “Thank you, Minneapolis.”
Baez performed with the local Singing Resistance.
3:55 p.m. Jane Fonda reads statement from Renee Macklin Good’s widow
Instead of giving a speech, actress and activist Jane Fonda read a statement provided from Becca Good, the wife of Renee Macklin Good. She shared the overwhelming love she has felt from Minnesotans after the killing of her wife.
“I am so heartbroken, I miss my wife. The world now knows that my wife sparkles with sunshine and kindness that was unmatched,” Fonda read. “We were robbed of an incredible human. It has made people pause and take a breathe and have to choose sides. We choose the side of love.”
In her statement Good shared that her dog that was seen in the car with Renee the day of her killing is OK. She said she and Renee stood for “radical kindness” and both believed that the power to change your mind can be powerful and brave.
“We can choose something else, we can choose radical kindness,” Fonda read.
3:35 p.m.: Sanders talks about courage, invokes Wellstone
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders from Vermont said it was appropriate to have the flagship “No Kings” rally in St. Paul.
“When historians write about this dangerous moment in American history, when they write about courage and sacrifice, the people of Minnesota will deserve a special chapter for themselves,” he said.
Sanders called Renee Macklin Good and Alex Pretti heroes, and said their deaths were not in vain but instead inspired American people in the “never ending struggle for justice.”
He quoted the late Minnesota U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone, “We all do better, when we all do better” as the crowd recited the statement with him.
3:10 p.m.: Minnesotans condemn ICE, say they stand for those affected
Remmus Xiong from the east side of St. Paul is a mental health practitioner and part of a Hmong response group. He said a lot of his clients are living in fear of ICE and being deported.
“It is important for us to show our face and to have visibility and to stand up for what’s right,” he said. “I think, in the Hmong culture, it is really hard for us to step outside of that; so, sometimes, it just takes one person for another person to have the courage to come out as well.”
Antonio Espinosa, a retired corrections officer and the founder of Art from the Inside said the rally was his second with the “No Kings” movement.
While he said he wasn’t personally affected by the surge of federal agents in the state, he came to stand by those who were.
“I’m here for those who have been impacted. I’m here for those friends of ours who are scared to come out of their houses. I’m here to represent those people,” he said.
2:45p.m.: Walz thanks Minnesotans, introduces Springsteen
Gov. Tim Walz took to the stage and talked about his gratefulness to Minnesota residents who stood against the ICE surge and called agents “untrained aggressive thugs.”
“You are the heart and soul of what the nation saw that is good but make no mistake about it, they did damage,” he said. “They killed Renee and Alex. They traumatized our neighbors. Our weather may be a little cool but our people are warm and fierce.”
Walz said he demands justice for the killings of Good and Pretti by federal agents, and everyone who was hurt or traumatized during the surge.
“We will never forget what they did here,” he added.
For immigrants in the state, he shared a message: “You are seen, heard, valued and loved. You add value to our state. You are part of the fabric of what is good about Minnesota.”
At the end of his speech, he introduced Bruce Springsteen to the stage to perform “On the Streets of Minneapolis.”
2:25 p.m.: Rally-goers talk democracy, federal agent killings
Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, said he believes Minnesota and the nation will continue to “resist.”
“You got thousands of people here already, and thousands more marching towards the Capitol today to stand in solidarity and to show again to the country what Minnesota has always shown us, how to lead, how to stand up and how to show this country, and the world, frankly, that even in the worst of humanity, there still is good,” he said. “There still is this idea of Minnesota nice.”
Ned Jeter came to the St. Paul rally from San Francisco. The 71-year-old said he is a passionate lover of democracy and is worried it is going away.
“I don’t like any of it,” he said. “So that’s why we decided to get on a plane and fly all the way out here. I think if we don’t push back against this it’s going to be all over. We’re going to lose this democracy.”
Cynthia Crooks came from Mahtomedi to attend and has been a volunteer for 35 years with asylum seekers and teaches English to immigrant children. She said they influenced her decision to attend the rally.
“I’m appalled and so angry about the current government we all have to suffer under and I’m thinking of Alex Pretti and Renee Good especially today and their families,” Crooks said.
She carried a sign that she made in January after Renee Macklin Good was killed that read “Mad Trump Goon Kills Kind Poet.”
1:25 p.m.: Robert DeNiro sends a message to Minnesota
Actor Robert DeNiro recorded a video message for Minnesotans that played on screens outside of the Capitol for rally-goers. As he shared his support of Minnesota during the ICE surge and disdain for the Trump administration, the crowd erupted.
“You Minnesota are at the epicenter. It’s your courage and commitment that has inspired all of us. You have shown the power of non-violent protests. You stood together and ran them out of town,” he said about federal agents.
12:50 p.m.: Speakers and performances begin at the Capitol
Minnesotan Liz Winstead, the co-creator of the Daily Show and founder of Abortion Access Front, started the festivities as emcee.
“You chased out of this state pure evil,” Winstead said. “You chased out the fun-sized fascist Greg Bovino. You chased out that evil Kristi Noem.”
The Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus group Borealis was the first performance and sang “We Shall Overcome,” a gospel song associated with the Civil Rights movement.
