North Carolina Peace Action proudly supports the “No Kings” rallies planned around our state on June 14 https://www.nokings.org AND the No Kings agenda of opposing dictatorial power for U.S. presidents. We say No to the military parade but also to the military’s wars. We say No to cutting useful government services but also to dumping ever more funds into war profiteering.
From Peace Action‘s Executive Director Jon Rainwater:
I’m writing to you today at a pivotal moment for our movement and the future of democracy and peace in the United States. On Saturday, June 14th, former President Donald Trump will spend at least $100 million of our taxpayer dollars on a military parade—a spectacle meant to glorify power and project strength, even as vital social services like Social Security, SNAP, and Medicaid face relentless cuts.
On the same day, you and I must raise our voices in response. On June 14, there will be a nationwide NO KINGS! mobilization, a grassroots day of protest to reject this corruption, abuse of power, and the creeping normalization of authoritarianism and militarism.
Find an event near you at the No Kings website or at the No Kings Mobilize page.
Trump’s obscene event is not just a wasteful party at your and my expense. It is a deliberate embrace of militarism and strongman authoritarianism, both of which threaten peace around the world and erode the foundations of democracy and civil rights here at home. History teaches us that military parades are not harmless displays; they are the pageantry of authoritarianism, designed to intimidate dissent and normalize the idea that might makes right. From Hitler’s Berlin birthday parades to shindigs in Pyongyang, these displays have always signaled a government more interested in domination than in dialogue, more invested in spectacle than in substance.
But the dangers do not end at the parade route. The logic of militarism is bleeding into every corner of our national life—including our immigration policies. We see it in the deployment of active duty troops to the border, in the construction of walls and detention centers, and in the language that treats refugees and migrants as enemies rather than as fellow human beings deserving of dignity and compassion. This militarized approach to policy is antithetical to the values of peace, justice, and democracy that we hold dear.
Enough is enough. We cannot allow our country to drift further down this dangerous path.
That is why I am encouraging you to join the NO KINGS actions on June 14th—a nationwide protest to reject this corruption, abuse of power, and the creeping normalization of militarism.
Together, we will raise our voices to say: No kings, no strongmen, no parades for war. We demand a government that invests in people, not pageantry; in peace, not provocation.
Ready to find an event near you? Check out the No Kings website or the No Kings Mobilize page.
Let’s make it clear: The peace movement stands united against militarism and authoritarianism—at home and abroad. Join us.
For peace and real democracy,
Jon Rainwater
Executive Director
Peace Action
c/o North Carolina Peace Action