Demonstrators are expected to take to the streets in dozens of Bay Area cities today as part of the nationwide No Kings rallies protesting President Donald Trump’s administration and the immigration crackdown that has defined the start of his second term. Nationwide, organizers say more than 2,700 protests are scheduled to take place.
Indivisible SF organizer Liliana Soroceanu said tens of thousands of protesters are expected to gather at the San Francisco demonstration this afternoon and that she expects No Kings 2 to be as big as the original No Kings, although the number of last-minute arrivals makes it hard to predict the turnout.
Although the demonstrations are framed as a broad repudiation of Trump, organizers have especially focused on immigration and the deployment of the National Guard in cities from Los Angeles to Chicago. Trump on Wednesday indicated that he wanted to send federal troops to San Francisco, hours after Mayor Daniel Lurie and local law enforcement leaders pushed back on calls for the president to do just that. The protests also come amid a government shutdown that appears to have no resolution in sight.
‘Penmanship is really important right now’
Dozens of people got to work in the back room of Manny’s in San Francisco on Saturday morning, preparing for the protest with markers, cardboard and hot glue…