"The Loudest We've Seen It In a While"-- No Kings, No Dictators, No Silence from O'ahu
- Cooper Johnson
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
By Cooper Johnson & Danya Abdeljawad
Photos by Kaiehu Helela
On Saturday, March 28th, under Hawai'i's beautiful blue skies, the people were in uproar. The aptly named "NO KINGS" protests erupted across two important landmarks on Oahu. Thousands gathered at Kapolei Regional Park and at the State Capitol to protest the current government regime. People of all different ages, races, cultural backgrounds, and motivations showed up with heavy hearts, creative signs, and enough volume to shake the streets.
How did it start?
The NO KINGS movement started as an act of defiance against President Trump and his administration, countering his birthday military parade on June 14th, 2025. Many Americans, including those in occupied Hawai’i (and beyond that), have been profoundly unsatisfied with his term to say the least. It has since blossomed into an impactful movement, gathering millions of people nationwide to exercise their First Amendment right to peacefully protest. This past nationwide call to action was the 3rd NO KINGS protest since its inception. NO KINGS was localized into NO DICTATORS in Hawai’i in order to pay respect to the past kings of Hawai’i, but carried the same powerful message that NO KINGS aimed to convey.
The roaring crowd
The protest at the State Capitol began uncertainly. Sometime before the 11am starting time, a bomb threat was called into the capital. Some protesters scattered, fearing their own safety, but many stood unwavering in the name of the movement and the message it carried. We saw many protesters pivot and change locations, to Thomas Square, the State Library, and the front of ʻIolani Palace. Where protesters were marching up and down the streets, waving their signs and receiving honks of solidarity from passing vehicles in busy downtown Honolulu. This continued, with many people in different places slowly making their way back and forth between those 3 locations and eventually heading back to their original location. Towards noon, the threat was cleared, and protesters gathered en masse at the State Capitol, lining the streets with their signs, music, flags, cheers, weeps, etc. The scene was loud and bright, with the massive turnout turning the Capitol's green grass into a vibrant sea of color. Even 4 legged friends were present to stand up for the cause at hand.
Voices
Sifting through the colors, there was a clear common denominator among attendees in their signage and language– opposition to Trump’s regime and his antics. Although there was a clear uniting force, the degree to which folks were protesting varied. Varying political parties alike were in attendance to voice their opposition, but while some simply wanted reform, others wanted a deconstruction of the whole system. Evident from Honolulu resident Patty, a frequent kupuna attendee of rallies protesting the current government regime.
“You look at the approval ratings and it’s always going down, and yet he [Donald Trump] is totally oblivious, he just does what he wants and nobody is standing up against him so I feel that it’s important that at least people know it’s more than you who doesn’t like what's going on,” she firmly stated, holding her hand-drawn sign depicting the president as a deconstruction of a Big Mac,
“Is this really what we need right now? An artery-clogging snack food?” she continued.
Others had more specific ideals and motivations to walk amongst the crowd.
Jessie from Ewa Beach, a UH West Oahu student, protested against ICE. “We’re standing up for people who can’t,” she proclaimed, her commitment to the movement unwavering despite a recent knee injury.
“As a teenager, it’s not okay we have to come out here when the adults are causing this,” said Harvey, a local high schooler.
“I’m here to protest the war in Iran and support Palestine," said Nick, a Leeward Community College student, standing out in the crowd with his stylish purple fox tail and his sign made from a toy sword and cardboard.
“He is doing so much damage– Damage to the healthcare system, to the education system…” voiced Kalena, another Leeward Community College student, passing out colorful handmade bracelets and flyers for RefuseFacism.org. The flyer read “The people’s indictment of Donald Trump: A unified declaration of illegitimacy…The Trump fascist regime must go now!”
Voter registration forms were also being passed out, encouraging protestors to participate in the upcoming midterm elections.
Another notable flyer being passed around read, “7 Reasons We Cannot Trust Ed Case.” It listed a number of reasons, such as “Answers to billionaire, dark money PACs, defense contractors and big corporations,” “supports making things less affordable,” and “is ok with the government labeling little local groups domestic terrorists.”
The ACLU, American Civil Liberties Union, was in attendance, passing out stickers and tattoos with the phrases “I know my rights” and “we the people”.
It is through these flyers and handouts that we observe protestors taking action to challenge the system they oppose. The use of physical media, such as flyers and handouts, served as a means to mobilize protestors and encourage engagement among community members.
What to do next?
What comes after NO KINGS? The movement writes on its website (NoKings.org) about plans for further action following the protest’s conclusion to spike interest and encourage further participation. There was a mass call event the week following No Kings, where people were encouraged to call their local representatives (which you can still do; find yours at House.gov). Coming up is the deadline for a call for mass organization within communities on April 12th, seeking strength in the community. Further from now, communities all over the United States are organizing and planning for another mass gathering titled ‘May Day’, May 1st. Hawai’i’s current plans for participation reside on Hawai’i Island’s Waikoloa Village, where Waikoloa Stands Up for Democracy currently holds meetings every Friday from 4-5PM. There is much more to follow from NO KINGS.
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