Thousands of Texans Take To No Kings Protests

Texans from all corners of the state ventured out on Saturday, October 18 to take part in another round of “No Kings” demonstrations. These peaceful protests were organized to push back on many of the policies from the Trump administration.

The No Kings moniker signifies that the United States is a democracy, and not a monarchy. Many of the signs and chants that could be witnessed from protesters in Texas demonstrated their aversion to authoritarianism or totalitarianism.

And while the crowds were often defiant in their refusal to bow to any king, there was a sense of whimsy at many of these No Kings gatherings. In Carrollton, Texas (just north of Texas), hundreds of protesters gathered at a busy intersection. Many passing cars honked as a sign of solidarity with the crowd, where classic rock music was also blaring. Amongst the Carrollton protesters were several inflatable animals – including a giraffe and unicorn.

In Plano, at least one frog could be spotted in the crowd of thousands that gathered at the corner of Preston and Parker, a very busy intersection in the North Texas city. The frog has become a symbol of resistance to the Trump administration after clashes in Portland between protesters and ICE agents.

In Dallas, pouring rain did not deter the thousands of protesters that descended on Pacific Plaza to hear from an assortment of speakers before starting a march through downtown. Many community and labor leaders talked about the power of collective action, especially as many Republican leaders like Ted Cruz have claimed protesters are staged or paid. Kat Vargas (also known as Howdy Politics) had the Dallas crowd cheering when she asked them where they can all pick up their checks from George Soros. “I’ve got news for you Ted Cruz, we all hate you for free,” said Vargas to the roaring crowd.

After Vargas, Pastor Mike Waters took to the stage in Dallas. He spoke about the infamous speech from German Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller about his complicity during Nazi Germany. Niemöller’s speech ends with the chilling line: “Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me.” Waters then implored the crowd to reclaim independence. The crowd then erupted into further cheers as Waters began reciting the actual Declaration of Independence.

Undeterred by the rain, the protesters in Dallas then marched through downtown.

All over Texas, similar scenes were playing out. There was a large presence in the capitol Austin, despite Texas Governor Abbott deploying the Texas National Guard. In almost every part of Texas, there were No Kings demonstrators – even in tinier pockets like Boerne, Flower Mound, and San Marcos.

You can see more photos and videos from today on our Bluesky or Threads.