SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Americans across the country are taking to the streets today. This is just getting started, but the organizers of the No Kings events say they expect peaceful demonstrations against what they see as the Trump administration's authoritarian agenda. Meanwhile, many Republicans are trying to portray the protesters as radical and violent. NPR's Joel Rose joins us now from downtown Washington, D.C. Joel, thanks for being with us. And what are you seeing?
JOEL ROSE, BYLINE: Hey, Scott. Yeah, I'm here on Pennsylvania Avenue, about a few blocks from the U.S. Capitol building, where this No Kings event is just getting underway at this hour. They are set up for a very large crowd here in the middle of Pennsylvania Avenue. It's been building over the course of the morning. People are holding up signs that say, No Kings, No Tyrants. Disobey Illegal Orders is a popular one. I see a lot of yellow here in the crowd - that's the official color of the No Kings events - in solidarity, the organizers say, with pro-democracy movements around the word. This is the second round of No Kings protests. Back in June, when the first round happened, there were 450 events around the country. This time, the organizers say there are more than 2,600 individual events planned. They will not say exactly how many people they're expecting this time, but they say the number will be into the millions.
SIMON: And I know you've been talking to people in the crowd. What do they say?
ROSE: Yeah. People - you know, I've been talking to people about why they - it was important for them to be here today. I talked to a woman from Virginia named MaryAnn Donlin (ph) and a father and son who came from Delaware named Uriah and Elijah Kitchen. Here's some of what they told me.
MARYANN DONLIN: I feel like we're heading to, like, a country like Russia or China or Korea. Losing free speech, the freedom of the press, and citizens need to push back and stand up for our rights and for our Constitution.
URIAH KITCHEN: We made a pledge of allegiance when we were in school. And this is what it's all about. This is why we're here. We're here to protect America.
ELIJAH KITCHEN: We're here because we love the United States. We love our country. We're not here 'cause we're getting paid. That's nonsense. It's crazy to even say that.
ROSE: I should say, I see quite a few American flags mixed in here with protest signs. Organizers say they're defending small-D democracy and their First Amendment right to protest peacefully.
SIMON: We're having some sound problems with Joel. I imagine, obviously, a lot of crush of people trying to communicate. What have we been hearing from many Republicans in Washington, D.C., Joel?
ROSE: (Inaudible).
SIMON: Let's - we have a clip from House Speaker Mike Johnson at a press conference this week.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
MIKE JOHNSON: I encourage you to watch - we call it the Hate America rally that'll happen Saturday. Let's see who shows up for that. I bet you see pro-Hamas supporters. I bet you see antifa types. I bet you see the Marxists in full display, the people who don't want to stand and defend the foundational truths of this republic.
SIMON: We are still having communications problems with Joel Rose. Can you hear me, Joel?
Well, there's a crush of people that are all over downtown D.C. and elsewhere in the country, and I think that's obviously complicating some of the communications we have. In any event, our reporter Joel Rose is on the scene of the No Kings rally - one of the No Kings rallies in Washington, D.C, and we thank Joel and other reporters who are covering it for us today. So thank you very much for being with us. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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