Colorado Springs residents participate in nationwide ‘No Kings 2.0′ protest

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) - Colorado Springs was one of many cities that saw demonstrations against the Trump administration on Saturday.

The “No Kings 2.0″ protest began in America the Beautiful Park, where many said they were protesting President Donald Trump’s policies on immigration, healthcare funding and what they said they believe are attempts to infringe on First Amendment rights.

“We have to treat each other as human beings,” said Bonnie Barnes, one of the protestors, “we have to have compassion and empathy, and this is not the way that we can live a good life.”

Organizers for the nationwide demonstration said there were more than 2,500 protests nationwide, all aimed at reminding Americans that political power belongs to the people.

It comes amid an ongoing government shutdown, where issues of funding continue to bring lawmakers to a stalemate. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson commented on the demonstrations on Friday, calling them a “Hate America Rally.”

“Now, obviously, every American has every right to exercise their First Amendment right,” Speaker Johnson said. “But tomorrow, this rally is not about freedom, it’s about the opposite.”

Johnson said he believed the protests were anti-American and born out of hatred.

“Many of them don’t like living in America,” he said. “They hate capitalism. They hate our free enterprise system. They hate our principles.”

Demonstrators in Colorado Springs said they disagreed with that assessment, arguing that the weekend’s event is about love for the country. They also addressed the president labelling the anti-fascist movement, ANTIFA, as a terrorist group, adding it to their grievances with the administration.

“We can prove to people that we are not terrorists,” said Barnes. “If we don’t start taking care of each other, we’re not going to make it.”

Organizers said participants were able to meet local organizations, sign petitions, make protest signs, register to vote, talk with school board candidates and join workshops highlighting local issues.