Thousands of Long Islanders protested the Trump Administration’s policies at “No Kings” rallies held on Saturday, October 18, in locations throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties.
These massive protests coincided with others carried out nationwide, in several cities and towns in the United States, where participants raised their strong message of defending democracy against chaos, racism and authoritarianism.
In our area, Protestants gathered from Mineola to the Hamptons to say “No” to immigration raids, changes in health care costs, and the deployment of National Guard troops to neighborhoods and streets.
Peaceful “No Kings” protests and marches were scheduled from the Nassau Courthouse to the Legislature headquarters in Mineola and also to locations in Lindenhurst, South Huntington, Port Washington, Patchogue, Port Jefferson Station, Medford, Shirley, Miller Place, Wading River, Riverhead, Hampton Bays, and in front of East Hampton City Hall.
«Power to the people! This afternoon, I proudly joined thousands of people at the No Kings rally in Mineola, where we peacefully and passionately protested the Trump Administration’s destructive policies, power grabs, and systematic efforts to undermine the rule of law,” said Arnold W. Drucker, Deputy Minority Leader of the Nassau County Legislature.
“Benjamin Franklin famously said that our government ‘is a republic, if it can be kept.’…In Mineola and at thousands of demonstrations across the country and the world, millions of patriots sent a clear and resounding message: our nation will not succumb to an authoritarian who believes himself to be king, not now nor ever. Let’s take advantage of today’s energy and continue working to create a more perfect union, with freedom and justice for all! “, stressed the Democratic official elected by Plainview.
Approximately 3,000 people could be seen at this event, accompanied by several local organizations such as Show Up LI, Engage LI, and the Long Island Network for Change (New York Communities For Change Long Island – LINC).
«I am here with the thousands of people in Mineola, on Long Island and across the country to raise our voices and fight for our democracy… We do not want kings in America. We want rights. We want freedom of expression. We want security. “We want our Constitution to be respected,” Emily Kaufman, LINC organizer, told the media.
Additionally, several local leaders and politicians spoke at the “No Kings” rally, including legislator Scott Davis, representative of the 1st. District (Hempstead, North Baldwin, Rockville Centre, Roosevelt, South Hempstead); legislator Seth Koslow, representative of the 5th. District (which includes most of Freeport and Merrick, and parts of North Merrick and North Bellmore) and Assemblyman Phil Ramos, representing the 6th. Long Island district and vice president of the state Assembly.
It should be noted that the Lieutenant Governor of the State of New York, Antonio Delgado, was the keynote speaker. “Democracy lives when people demonstrate, raise their voices and reject fear… In Mineola, we come together to say it out loud: there are no kings here, only the power of the people,” said Delgado, who opened this intense Saturday day of previous protests in Forest Hills (Queens), with more than a thousand New Yorkers who refuse to remain silent, and after visiting Long Island he attended other demonstrations in Nanuet, Beacon and Brewster (Upstate NY).
They shout NO to authoritarianism
«The power of the presidency has been used to attack universities, political adversaries and the very essence of our democracy. “It has been used to terrorize our immigrant communities and make them disappear from the streets,” the organizers of the “No Kings” peaceful demonstration noted in a statement.
“It has been used to decimate federal employees who keep us safe, oversee our Social Security payments, care for our veterans, develop cancer treatments, monitor severe weather, respond to disasters, and maintain our national parks.”
“Disastrous cuts are looming in the services and health care that working and vulnerable Americans depend on. The painful consequences of these senseless cuts are being felt across the country, while enriching a cabinet of billionaires and their allies. We will say no to cruelty and chaos. “Our country belongs to the American people and we will peacefully oppose authoritarianism and defend our democracy,” they warned from “No Kings.”
For his part, the vice president of the New York State Assembly, Phil Ramos, declared: «WE HAVE NO KINGS in our country! We support the people!”… “With one voice, we declare: We have no kings here!”
“October 18, 2025 will be remembered as the day the people united and recovered our democracy… I call on all lovers of freedom, everywhere, to stand in solidarity,” concluded the experienced politician of Puerto Rican origin.
