Multiple demonstrations were taking place in Riverside County Saturday to protest the policies of the Trump administration in the nationwide “No Kings Day of Defiance” demonstrations.
Protests were scheduled at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Walmart Supercenter on Second Street in Beaumont, Rimpau Park on East Ontario Avenue in Corona and the Duck Pond at Rancho California and Ynez roads in Temecula.
Evening rallies were scheduled for 6 p.m. in Palm Springs Park at Belardo Road and Museum Way and along the Main Street Pedestrian Mall, near Main Street and University Avenue in Riverside.
The complete list of nationwide events is available at www.NoKings.org.
In Rancho Mirage, thousands of people gathered for blocks along Highway 111 holding signs with messages such as “Clean up on aisle 47,” “Immigrants aren’t criminals but the president is,” and “No kings in America.”
Thousands of people also protested on all four corners of the intersection of Rancho California and Ynez Roads in Temecula as cars honked while they drove by. Protesters in Temecula were seen holding signs, including one that said, “No kings in America since 1776.”
The protests were meant as a counterpoint to Saturday evening’s military parade in Washington, D.C., which honored the 250th birthday of the U.S. Army, and also coincided with President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday.
The “Grand Military Parade” featured more than 6,700 soldiers and dozens of armored vehicles parading through the capital.
Opponents of the parade — the nation’s first since 1991’s National Victory Celebration, which was timed to welcome returning veterans of the 100- day Persian Gulf War — say it is a vanity project of a nascent dictator.
Trump said Thursday that he hopes the parade will show people “How great our country is, very simple, and how strong our military is.”
On Saturday morning, the president wrote on Truth Social: “Our great military parade is on, rain or shine. Remember, a rainy day parade brings good luck. I’ll see you all in D.C.”
Municipal police agencies, as well as the county sheriff’s department, released statements warning activists that while they have every right under the First Amendment to assemble and peacefully protest, behavior that leads to damage, obstructs traffic or interferes with law enforcement operations won’t be tolerated.
“Adherence to the law is an absolute requirement if we are to remain a civilized society,” according to a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department statement. “You are no longer exercising your rights when you infringe on someone else’s constitutional rights or freedoms.”
No arrests or violent incidents were reported in the county’s No Kings protests as of 3:30 p.m.