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A third round of \u201cNo Kings\u201d protests is coming this spring, with organizers saying they are planning their largest demonstrations yet across the United States to oppose what they describe as authoritarianism under President Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n Previous rallies have drawn millions of people, and organizers said they expect even greater numbers on March 28 in the wake of Trump’s immigration crackdown in Minneapolis<\/a>, where violent clashes have led to the death of two people. <\/p>\n \u201cWe expect this to be the largest protest in American history,\u201d Ezra Levin, co-executive director of the nonprofit Indivisible, told The Associated Press ahead of Wednesday’s announcement. He predicted that as many as 9 million people will turn out. <\/p>\n \u201cNo Kings\u201d protests, which are organized by a constellation of groups around the country, have been a focal point for outrage over Trump’s attempts to consolidate and expand his power. <\/p>\n \u201cThis is in large part a response to a combination of the heinous attacks on our democracy and communities coming from the regime, and a sense that nobody\u2019s coming to save us,” Levin said. <\/p>\n Last year, Trump said he felt attendees were \u201cnot representative of the people of our country,\u201d and he insisted that \u201cI\u2019m not a king.\u201d<\/p>\n The latest round of protests had been in the works before the crackdown in Minneapolis. However, the killing of two people by federal agents in recent weeks has refocused plans. <\/p>\n Levin said they want to show \u201csupport for Minnesota and immigrant communities all over\u201d and oppose \u201cthe secret police force that is murdering Americans and infringing on their basic constitutional rights.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cAnd what we know is, the only way to defend those rights is to exercise them, and you do that in nonviolent but forceful ways, and that\u2019s what I expect to see in \u2018No Kings\u2019 three,” Levin said. <\/p>\n Trump has broadly defended his aggressive deportation campaign and blamed local officials for refusing to cooperate. However, he’s more recently signaled a shift in response to bipartisan concern over the killing of Alex Pretti<\/a> in Minneapolis on Saturday. <\/p>\n In June, the first \u201cNo Kings\u201d rallies were organized in nearly 2,000 locations nationwide, including cities, towns and community spaces. Those protests followed unrest over federal immigration raids and Trump\u2019s deployment of the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles<\/a>, where tensions escalated with protesters blocking a freeway and setting vehicles on fire.<\/p>\n They were organized also in large part to protest a military parade in the nation’s capital<\/a> that marked the Army\u2019s 250th anniversary and coincided with Trump\u2019s birthday<\/a>. \u201cNo Kings\u201d organizers at the time called the parade a \u201ccoronation\u201d that was symbolic of what they characterized as Trump\u2019s growing authoritarian overreach. <\/p>\n In response, some conservative politicians condemned the protests as \u201cHate America\u201d rallies<\/a>.<\/p>\n During a second round of protests in October, organizers said demonstrations were held in about 2,700 cities and towns across the country. At the time, Levin pointed to Trump\u2019s sweeping immigration crackdown, his unprecedented promises<\/a> to use federal power to influence midterm elections, restrictions on press freedom<\/a> and retribution against<\/a> political opponents, steps he said cumulatively represented a direct threat to constitutionally protected rights.<\/p>\n On social media, both Trump and the official White House account mocked the protests, posting computer-generated images of the president wearing a crown.<\/p>\n The big protest days are headline-grabbing moments, but Levin said groups like his are determined to keep up steady trainings and intermediate-level organizing in hopes of growing sustainable resistance to the Trump administration’s actions.<\/p>\n \u201cThis isn\u2019t about Democrats versus Republicans. This is about do we have a democracy at all, and what are we going to tell our kids and our grandkids about what we did in this moment?” Levin said. “I think that demands the kind of persistent engagement. \u201d<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Meg Kinnard can be reached at http:\/\/x.com\/MegKinnardAP<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n