Articles

Originally published in: WUSA 9

Thousands of people participated in 'No Kings' protests across Northern Virginia, Saturday, including one on King Street in Old Town, Alexandria.

Others could be seen by drivers traveling on I-395 in Arlington. 'No Kings' protesters hung signs and flags on highway overpasses just a few miles from Saturday’s parade.

“When you ignore the people, this is the kind of thing that happens," said one protester.

“We love what the Army is, we think it should be celebrated," said another protester. "We also think that they hopefully are reminded of the fact that they have an obligation to the people and to fight for democracy.”

The 'No Kings' coalition says millions of people came out to demonstrate in over 1,500 cities and towns across the country.

“The power in this country with a democracy lies with the people," said a protester on a highway overpass. "It doesn’t lie in Washington, DC, in the Oval Office, or in Congress, it’s with the people.”

In the heart of Alexandria’s Old Town, thousands more made their voices heard.

“Go ahead, have your parade and your pomp and circumstance. We don’t care," said Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins to Saturday's crowd. "We don’t pay attention to it, because at the end of the day, we know we are stronger than that.”

“There is an obligation for people locally to stand up and show out and show that we are here to support the people who are being downtrodden by this regime," said one protester on King Street.

Among those supporters was Virginia Congressman Don Beyer, who says gatherings like this inspire hope.

“It’s hard. These are really dark times, but we will prevail and we’re going to prevail because people like this are coming out all over the country, determined to fight back," said Beyer.