As President Donald Trump prepares to mark his 79th birthday with a controversial $100 million military parade in Washington, D.C., Queens residents will gather for a protest of their own.
A grassroots rally and march titled “Queens Says No Kings” is set for Saturday, June 14 at 12:30 p.m. in MacDonald Park on Queens Blvd. between Yellowstone Blvd. and 70 Rd., in Forest Hills. The event is organized by Stop the Steal for Real (STSFR), a local activist group aiming to push back against what it calls “the illegal actions of this administration” and the dismantling of social programs that everyday New Yorkers rely on.
“Enough already!” the group said in a statement. “We plan to tell the stories of those directly impacted by these actions. All ages are welcome. Join us and meet others who are just as worried and frustrated!”
Saturday’s protest is one of more than 100 demonstrations planned across the United States as part of a nationwide movement called “No Kings.” Organized through NoKings.org, the campaign is described as a day of peaceful defiance “from city blocks to small towns, from courthouse steps to community parks.”
“We’re taking action to reject authoritarianism—and show the world what democracy really looks like,” reads the main page of the website. “We’re not gathering to feed his ego. We’re building a movement that leaves him behind.”
The June 14 protests build on the momentum of the “Hands Off” movement, a series of mass mobilizations on April 5 that drew millions of Americans into the streets to protest Trump’s ongoing political influence and attacks on democratic institutions.
Trump’s military parade in Washington has drawn sharp criticism for its projected $100 million cost and planned display of tanks, troops, and aircraft — a spectacle opponents call an authoritarian display funded by taxpayers. Trump, in a Tuesday press conference, warned that anyone attempting to disrupt the parade would be met with “very big force.”
The Queens protest will feature speeches, personal stories from local residents, and a march along Queens Boulevard. It’s one of several demonstrations planned in New York City. Other “No Kings” events are expected at Grace Plaza and Columbia University in Manhattan, Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, and on Victory Boulevard in Staten Island.
Trump, who was born at Jamaica Hospital and raised in the Jamaica Estates section of Queens, remains a divisive figure in the borough. Though New York City leans heavily Democratic, the Forest Hills event is one of the largest anti-Trump actions to be organized in Queens this year.
The national protests come at a time of escalating tensions over immigration enforcement. Demonstrations have erupted in Los Angeles and New York following a wave of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, many carried out by masked officers at courthouses. In response to the unrest, Trump has deployed 700 active-duty Marines and 4,000 National Guard members to Los Angeles, drawing condemnation from civil rights advocates and elected officials.
The “No Kings” day of action reflects a growing, nationwide resistance to what organizers describe as the normalization of authoritarianism in American politics. As protests unfold from coast to coast — including in the president’s home borough — advocates say the goal is not just to oppose one figure, but to defend democratic values, protect vulnerable communities, and build a future grounded in accountability and civic participation.
