This is an article from the June 2025 Civitas Examiner (Volume 2, No. 3) and was written by one of our students, Ruthvi T. The opinions expressed herein do not reflect those of Civitas other than respect for the value of open dialogue. To read more Civitas Examiner stories or to submit your own, click here.
On June 14, protests unfolded across the United States. Titled the “No Kings” protest, Americans came together to challenge President Trump’s actions. The demonstrations occurred at the same time as Trump’s birthday celebration and the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary parade. Writers from Fox News have equated the parade to the extremist events that commonly take place in North Korea and Russia. Fox News also noted the opposing perspective, from which conservatives criticized American Federation of Teachers chief Randi Weingarten for giving a speech opposing Donald Trump. This criticism expands to the many people who felt that the protest was too performative and dramatic.
In addition to over 2,000 protests throughout the U.S., many major protests took place right here in St. Louis. Over 1,000 protestors gathered in downtown St. Louis with posters, signage and megaphones. Protestors also gathered along the side of Manchester Road, while some cars passed by with their own signage. Demonstrators marched under the Gateway Arch, under the protection of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police.
Civitas Program Director Stephanie Gavin attended the protest at the Ballwin location with her husband and a group of friends. Before the protest, Gavin had written letters and postcards, left voicemails and called leaders to express her strong opposition to the actions of the Trump administration. However, she felt most validated in her efforts when she attended the protest.
“I feel strongly that we need to rise up and protest against the Trump administration. It’s not just Donald Trump, but almost all of the Cabinet members he’s appointed, the Senate and the Supreme Court. It’s all going in a direction that I don’t want our country to go in,” Gavin said.
While Gavin originally wanted to attend the protest held in downtown St. Louis, some of her peers felt that it would be too unsafe to attend. However, Gavin felt there was no reason to have fear because much of the protest was peaceful, besides some onlookers who felt compelled to stand in support of Trump.
“Most people have no intent of doing anything violent. We want our voices and our discontent to be seen and heard,” Gavin said.
Before the protests, Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe called in the National Guard to assist the police. He also declared a state of emergency, a decision likely inspired by President Trump’s deployment of the National Guard into California following protests of the actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“The National Guard being called into Los Angeles is ridiculous. Those protests were not out of hand. There might have been a few people who were doing things they shouldn’t have, but the LA police officers would have easily handled that,” Gavin said.
More than two weeks have passed since the protests, and other protests have been planned over the days. In Missouri, peace-promoting organizations like Indivisible St. Louis and 50501 have vied to take action against the Trump administration in the form of peaceful demonstrations. These organizations have the backing of thousands of supporters who agree with the common message of promoting democracy and fighting against oppression. Like many other demonstrators, Gavin hopes to attend another protest in the future.
“Love, empathy, and acceptance are all character traits that protesters are trying to project that we don’t see coming from our administration. America has the means and the heart to look out for others, and Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency are trying to dismantle that American faith,” Gavin said.
