‘No Kings’ protest draws up to 20,000 in Austin despite 'credible threat' to Texas lawmakers

Tens of thousands of people gathered at the Texas Capitol on Saturday for a planned protest and an impromptu march through downtown Austin, where demonstrators loudly decried President Donald Trump and his administration's policies.

The demonstrations — which organizers estimate drew up to 20,000 people — concluded mostly peacefully just hours after a death threat made against state lawmakers scheduled to attend the protest prompted a brief evacuation of the Capitol complex.

Austin’s “No Kings” rally coincided with similar protests across the United States that were scheduled as counterprogramming to a planned military parade in the nation’s capital. It was the first major demonstration in Austin since an anti-Trump immigration crackdown protest Monday resulted in 13 arrests and multiple injuries to rallygoers and police officers when demonstrators clashed with law enforcement downtown.

‘No Kings’ rally, march in Austin mostly peaceful

The Austin protest was one of more than 2,000 held across the U.S. by the progressive group Indivisible and grassroots collective 50501. It was sponsored locally by Hands Off Central Texas, which began planning the protest weeks before the highly tense anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protests in Los Angeles, where Trump called the National Guard and military to intervene before a judge stopped the president's action.

The rally began on the south steps of the Texas Capitol at 5 p.m. and ended by 8 p.m., though demonstrators began gathering an hour beforehand and marched through downtown Austin streets for another two hours after the organized event concluded. By 6:30 p.m., the crowd had grown to more than 10,000, according to state troopers.

The circus-themed event included remarks from Democratic officials from Central Texas, including U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, state Rep. John Bucy and Austin City Council Member Zo Qadri. Many people held signs, waved flags or played drums while speakers denounced the president and voiced strong support for transgender rights, immigrant rights and protester rights.

One of those protesters was Austin resident Monica Castillo, who came out in a Mexican jersey and flags. She told the American-Statesman that she attended to protest on behalf of her family members who do not have legal status and could not attend.

“They’re scared to come out,” Castillo said. “I’m here for that. They’re just getting Mexicans and brown people.”

Stephany Burton, who painted herself teal and dressed as the Statue of Liberty for the protest, said “Nazis are running our country. How do you have a life without immigrants?”

Paul Vonder Haar, treasurer of Hands Off Central Texas, told the Statesman on Sunday he was blown away by the event’s turnout.

“Despite all the fears from (Friday) and certain unexpected difficulties ... I think that it was a resounding success,” Vonder Haar said. “At the Capitol, I’m very pleased that we were able to stick to nonviolence, stick to the circus theme, and provide a safe, secure and fun environment for everyone involved.”

When the Capitol grounds closed at 8 p.m., many protesters dispersed, and many others started marching south on Congress Avenue. “No Kings” organizers made clear that the impromptu march was not part of the planned protest at the Capitol.

The demonstrations remained mostly peaceful, though, as dozens of police officers and state troopers on bicycles and horses directed protesters through downtown streets and blocked traffic.

State troopers emerged from the J.J. Pickle Federal Building — the home of a local ICE office and where Monday’s demonstration was held — as masked protesters began arriving at the site. Other protesters filtered throughout downtown, some marching down Sixth Street, while others moved toward the Austin Convention Center.

Troopers at the Pickle Building shouted at demonstrators to avoid gathering on the sidewalk, repeatedly calling out, “Keep moving!” Authorities eventually deployed chemical agents (likely tear gas) near the Pickle Building to disperse the crowd.

Later in the evening, Austin police ordered marchers to remain on the sidewalk or face arrest; dozens of protesters defied officers and sat down in the middle of the roadway in front of them, one holding a billowing American flag as traffic lights flashed from red to green.

The Statesman observed at least one demonstrator being detained Saturday. The Austin Police Department and Texas Department of Public Safety did not immediately respond Sunday to a Statesman request for information about arrests.

“With the exception of a small number of agitators, the event remained largely peaceful,” Austin police wrote on social media, adding that additional details would be shared over the next few days.

Austin Mayor Kirk Watson in a statement late Saturday praised Austinites for peacefully exercising their First Amendment rights.

“Folks from across our city and Central Texas made their voices heard — and did it in the right way,” Watson wrote. “Austinites overwhelmingly chose not to be a tool in the chaos we see out of Washington.”

Gov. Greg Abbott deployed 5,000 National Guard troops throughout the state — including some to Austin, according to the mayor — in preparation for potential unrest. Guardsmen, however, were not observed at Saturday’s events.

DPS arrests man in connection with threat against lawmakers

In the leadup to the “No Kings” protest, a “credible threat” targeted at state lawmakers attending the protest led to a brief evacuation of the Capitol complex and the arrest of one man near La Grange.

The threats had roiled the capital city, leading DPS to evacuate the Capitol building and surrounding grounds “out of an abundance of caution” around 1 p.m. DPS reopened the grounds around 4:40 p.m., according to a memo addressed to lawmakers and staff, though the building remained closed for the rest of the day.

A state trooper detained the man accused of making the threat after a traffic stop in La Grange, around 65 miles southeast of Austin, the department said.

The threat came on the same day when two state lawmakers from the Democratic-Farmer-Labor party were shot, one fatally, in Minnesota. Both events left Texas elected officials shaken, and in a letter Saturday night, 44 out of 62 Texas House Democrats called on Abbott to strengthen protections for state lawmakers in light of the killings of Minnesota Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband. Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were wounded.

Thousands protest Trump across Texas

Other “No Kings” protests drew hundreds in nearby Central Texas communities, including Pflugerville, Lockhart, Bastrop, Taylor, Dripping Springs and Fredericksburg. Those events also remained peaceful.

Thousands protested peacefully in downtown San Antonio on Saturday, the San Antonio Express-News reported. As protesters dispersed, some started an extemporaneous cumbia dance party in a nearby park.

In Dallas, police told Fox 4 they estimated 10,000 people had turned out to demonstrate, and the Houston Chronicle reported that 15,000 people attended the city’s anti-Trump demonstration, quoting an estimate from U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D- Houston.

In Fort Worth, dozens of women dressed as handmaidens from Margaret Atwood’s dystopian “Handmaid’s Tale” carrying a banner stating “We The People Were Not Meant to Kneel.”

Back in Austin, Vonder Haar said Saturday’s demonstration “is not the end.”

“This is the beginning,” he said. “We got the message out, but the real work is only just beginning.”