Was it the awakening – albeit timid – of anti-Trump America? Nearly 100 demonstrations took place in the US on Monday, February 17, on Presidents' Day, to protest Donald Trump's autocratic drift and Elon Musk's takeover of the federal government. "No monarchy in America!" chanted the demonstrators.

From New York to Los Angeles (California), from Anchorage (Alaska) to Orlando (Florida), as well as many medium-sized towns that are unaccustomed to such events, such as Knoxville (Tennessee), Waco (Texas) and Fayetteville (Arkansas), tens of thousands of Americans went out to make Presidents' Day – a holiday traditionally celebrated on the third Monday in February, which celebrates the births of both George Washington (February 22, 1732) and Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809) – a "No Kings Day." The day before, in a post shared by the White House's official account, Trump had responded to the protests with a quote attributed not to a king, but to an emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte: "He who saves his Country does not violate any Law."

The protests stemmed from a spontaneous movement born on the social media platform Reddit at the end of January, called "50501" – for "50 protests, 50 states, 1 day." Even the organizers had been surprised when they saw that their first day of action, on February 5, drew tens of thousands of people in some 40 states. "People needed to get together," said one of the movement's spokeswomen, Sarah Parker, contacted in Sarasota, Florida.

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