John,
Last weekend, more than seven million people turned out at 2,300 events nationwide to declare that we will bow to No King in America. I had a chance to address the crowd in Seattle, and I’ve included the text of that speech below.
I hope you’ll give it a read. We’re at an inflection point in the history of our country, and each of us has a duty to stand up and do what we can to defend the ideals that our nation was built on.
Millions turned out this weekend because we’re up against a serious choice in our country.
At the 1787 Constitutional Convention, Benjamin Franklin was asked what kind of a government they had created. And he famously responded, “A Republic… if you can keep it.” We are at the moment that will determine if we can keep it.
It would be easy to look at what is happening around us and throw up our hands, be angry, be frustrated, blame someone else, or just disengage because there’s too much hate, corruption, cruelty and violence — led from the top by a man who is clearly not well.
A wannabe king who dehumanizes trans people, immigrants and Black people to distract you from his real agenda.
A wannabe king who sends National Guard troops and masked men into our cities, militarizing our streets, kidnapping and disappearing tens of thousands of people from our communities, and trying to suppress dissent and peaceful protest.
A wannabe king who has politicized the entire Justice Department and uses the federal government to go after his political opponents on a revenge tour, all while he accepts luxury jets from foreign countries and makes billions on his own meme coins.
A wannabe king who has willfully destroyed trust in government with his lies, humiliating and threatening civil servants, shuttering federal agencies, firing 200,000 federal workers, and shutting down the government, furloughing another 750,000 federal workers and illegally threatening not to pay them.
None of these things are disconnected. As written in Project 2025 and enacted with frightening speed, this is the destruction of our Republic, designed to take over control of our government so it answers only to the King, not us — to divide us so he can take our power and turn it into his power and reward the billionaires, giant corporations and anyone else who bends the knee with trillions of dollars of tax breaks, and pardons to violent insurrectionists, sex predators and corporate thieves.
Franklin knew these moments would come. That this republic was a massive experiment and whatever wisdom they had 300 years ago would need updating for the moment, and protection from the constant threat of wannabe kings. He knew that it would be We the People who would decide in every single moment what kind of nation we are and what kind of nation we will be tomorrow.
And in the violence of this moment, we are called to bring love. In the cowardice of the bully, we are called to bring the strength of the people. In the shadow of fear, we are called to bring compassion and support to those most vulnerable. In the horror of dehumanization, we are called to make real our own humanity and refuse to turn against each other.
In the depths of the lies, we are called to shout from the rooftops these self-evident truths:
That is directly from the Declaration of Independence. And it’s not just our right, but our obligation to one another.
We are at that moment again when it is up to us to secure the safety and happiness of the people and to demand a government that works for us, not for a King, not for the billionaires but for working people and poor people—whatever race, gender or zip code you live in.
A country where people are not saddled with debt, worry and sleepless nights, but instead can actually afford housing, childcare, education, universal healthcare and a solid retirement so they thrive not just survive.
Where the 99% have the majority of wealth and income instead of the 1% of billionaires. Where we work for true peace around the world, not war. Where we lift each other up instead of turning on one another. Where we glory the selfless, not the selfish. Where there is due process, free speech, and the freedom to protest and assemble.
Millions turned out today because we know this is that moment. Protests are powerful, they keep us united, they speak our deepest truths out loud, and they draw us in.
But the work is every day to topple the pillars of power that prop up wannabe Kings and move toward nonviolent non-cooperation, a powerful force that has been used time and time again to bring down dictators and authoritarians.
WE have to let those who cave or those who remain silent when they should speak up — the universities, law firms, corporations — know that we are watching you, we will push back, and we WILL call you out.
We have so many great examples of this already. The Tesla takedowns worked and got Elon Musk out of DOGE. Rapid response networks are videoing the violence of ICE agents so they can’t hide. Communities are forming nonviolent barriers to protect their neighbors and friends. Schools and apartment complexes and cities and states are refusing to allow for illegal action. That is what nonviolent non-cooperation looks like.
Because here’s the thing: repressive regimes overestimate their power and underestimate the power of the people. They miscalculate that we will cave instead of standing up.
And this weekend, on the 18th day of the Republican shutdown, they miscalculated. We are NOT caving in.
As they illegally try to send National Guard troops and ICE agents into our cities to militarize our streets, show them that they once again miscalculated in thinking that all Americans hate immigrants and would get behind mass deportations or allowing the military in our streets.
From Joe Rogan speaking out against those mass deportations, to the 12 million Americans who live in a household with an undocumented immigrant, to our American economy that would never survive without the contributions of immigrants of all statuses, they miscalculated.
We are a country uniquely tied to our immigrant identity, and if you want to come for immigrants, you have to go through ALL of us.
They miscalculated because they forgot the simple truth: that power doesn’t flow from the top down, it flows from the bottom up.
So now is the moment to make their miscalculations backfire on them, to build our bottom up power and grow our nonviolent resistance movement.
That’s exactly why I’ve launched my Resistance Lab trainings, based on real research about how to effectively and non-violently fight authoritarians and dictators — not just on our days of coordinated action and protest, but every single day in between.
Thousands and thousands of We the People from all 50 states and over half a dozen countries have already participated to understand the frameworks of how democracies crumble, and to leave with real tools, knowledge, and actions you can take to protect our democracy.
If there’s one thing you do today, go to ResistanceLab.US and sign up for a virtual Resistance Lab training.
There are tens of thousands of people here—and MILLIONS across the country. Imagine what would happen if each person that attended a No Kings event today went home and engaged in one act of nonviolent resistance, in whatever way they can. Imagine how those individual seeds of resistance would BRAID together into something bigger, stronger, and more rooted. Imagine the small acts of courage that ripple out, inspire others, and shift the tide even more quickly.
So, right now, let’s show the power of our movement. I want you to let us ALL hear what OUR power sounds like.
No Kings!
If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading. If you’d like to take the next step, please consider pitching in to support all the work my campaign is doing today.
In solidarity,
Pramila Jayapal
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