Powerful labor union urges public to join ‘No Kings Day’ protests

LOS ANGELES – A prominent labor union and organizers for Saturday’s “No Kings Day” protest are urging Southern California residents to participate in several demonstrations planned across the region against the Trump administration.

During a news conference outside City Hall Thursday, officials with Service Employees International Union Local 721, representing public service workers in Southern California with more than 100,000 members, called on residents to show up for rallies scheduled to take place nationwide with several planned in the LA region.

Union representatives emphasized the importance of mobilizing and resisting the Trump administration.

‘No kings in this country’

“The Los Angeles community will show the Trump administration and our great nation that we have no kings, and I repeat, no kings in this country,” Martin Manteca, organizing director of SEIU Local 721 and the California Gig Workers Union, said.

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“We are a nation of laws, of fundamental human rights and of basic decency. We will not let a petty wannabe dictator rip apart our communities, take away our rights and hurt our neighborhoods.”

“We will not let this administration harm working families so its billionaires and oligarch friends can get richer and take control of our government,” Manteca added.

Manteca and other union representatives joined leaders of SoCal 50501, a partner of the Southern California “No Kings Day” protests, to also highlight the importance of organizing.

SoCal 50501 is the Los Angeles chapter of 50501 which billls itself as “a peaceful, decentralized grassroots political movement with a mission to uphold democracy and constitutional governance.” Its name stems from “50 protests. 50 states. 1 Movement.”

Several speakers criticized the Trump administration’s aggressive policies on illegal immigration, as well as Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to Democratic-led cities and states, among other issues.

“L.A. has been hit hard by this administration. The administration has sent masked men in combat gear to kidnap children from schools, question and snatch neighbors off the streets, assault and take workers from Home Depots, car washes, stores and restaurants,” Manteca said.

‘Resistance movement’

He believes that union organizing has and will continue to lead the “resistance movement.”
Manteca noted that some Southern California unions partnered with social and community organizations to start a summer resistance program, which have led rallies, protests, and called for boycotts of businesses that have supported federal enforcement actions against illegal immigration.

“We will continue to support and advocate for our immigrant communities and working people across this country. We will not back down,” Manteca said. “I shared this because I want us to remember that when we come together and fight back against the billionaires, oligarchs and wannabe dictators, we can win. I call on everyone in the LA area to join the resistance and fight back.”

The initial No Kings Day protests were held June 14, the same day as the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army and President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday. More than 5 million people participated nationwide, according to organizers.

No Kings describes the day as a “peaceful, national day of action and mass mobilization” responding to “the increasing authoritarian excesses and corruption of the Trump administration.”

More than 200 rallies are planned for California, including 10 in Los Angeles County, organizers said.
A representative for the Republican Party of Los Angeles County did not immediately respond to a request for comment from City News Service. (CNS)

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