Demonstrators gather, then march in downtown Houston ‘No Kings’ protest

The protest in downtown Houston was one of several across the Houston area and thousands in the country.

HOUSTON — Crowds gathered in downtown Houston on Saturday in the third ‘No Kings’ demonstration, held to protest what they believe is overreaching authority by the Trump administration.

The Houston protests got underway at noon with speakers at City Hall and ended at around 4 p.m. as crowds filed out of downtown Houston.  

Reporters Michelle Choi and Katiera Winfrey were at City Hall covering it for KHOU 11. They noted the crowds were big but not as large as the ones held last year.

They spoke to people who went downtown for the protest, asking what brought them out.

“As an American, we have the right to free speech, the freedom to assemble, and when times are like they are now, I feel like it’s my duty. I’m a military veteran,” said a man named Bob in the crowd. “I’ve served this country as my father had and his father, and we are not here because we like kings. We are here because the people that are in power right now are acting like kings and trying to take away our rights and I feel like one of the things I can do is to protest peacefully.”

“Many of us will have certain things that were focused on, but together and collectively, we all just want things to be better. We want things to be fairer. We want things to be legal. We want to stop the ugliness,” protester Steven said.

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After the demonstration at Houston City Hall, the protesters started marching in the streets downtown.  During the march, a giant version of the U.S. Constitution was visible from Air 11.

“We the people are the ones who have to rectify this. My sign says I love America, therefore I March and that’s true,” Sandy Dwyer said. Dwyer says basic rights are being attacked. Others shared concerns about what they call a never-ending string of issues.

“I think the chaos is the plan. I really think that they want to keep us off balance,” Debbie Masden said.

“We don’t agree with what’s going on, and we need to band together to stop it,” Lynn Snowden said.

The demonstration in downtown Houston is one of several across the Houston area and thousands reported around the country.

On Friday, the White House called the planned protests “Trump derangement therapy sessions no one cares about.”

You can see live video from other marches across the country here.

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