The joy of resistance: A gallery of No Kings signs from Iowa

Passion, creativity, and humor on display

Photo from the No Kings rally in Des Moines on October 18, courtesy of the Polk County Democrats

This original reporting and analysis first appeared at Bleeding Heartland and is shared here as part of the Iowa Writers Collaborative. For regular emails linking to all recent Bleeding Heartland articles and commentary, subscribe to the free Evening Heartland newsletter. If your email provider truncates this post, you can read it without interruption here.

Some 25,000 to 30,000 Iowans were among the millions of Americans who protested President Donald Trump’s abuses of power on October 18. Despite the grave threats that brought people to the rallies, the prevailing mood was upbeat at the two “No Kings” events I attended. That’s consistent with news reports and anecdotal accounts of a “festival atmosphere” in cities and towns across the country.

I took most of the photos enclosed below in Indianola, where more than 300 people lined a busy street in the late morning, or at the early afternoon rally outside the state capitol in Des Moines. Hand-made signs vastly outnumbered professionally printed signs, capturing the protesters’ passion, creativity, and humor.

VARIATIONS ON THE “NO KINGS” MESSAGE

The “No Kings” slogan was designed to appeal to Americans across the political spectrum, so the rallies would not look like a Democratic convention. Lots of people kept it simple, with the two-word slogan and a picture of a crown crossed out. Among the many variations on that theme, some signs named Trump as the would-be sovereign.

A few signs read “NOPE,” with a king’s crown lying on its side to represent the “E.” (These were callbacks to Barack Obama’s “HOPE” campaign signs.)

The shape and color scheme of a stop sign grabs your attention.

A play on words inspired some signs featuring monarch butterflies.

One protester in Indianola invoked the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

EXPRESSIONS OF LOVE AND PRIDE

Leading up to this weekend, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republicans tried to brand the October 18 events as “Hate America” rallies. U.S. Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-01) posted her dismissive take on the morning of October 18: “We ditched kings 250 years ago. The Soros-funded, America hating, communist organizers behind today’s protests still haven’t gotten the memo. Hope everyone stays safe today.”

They couldn’t have been more wrong. Everywhere you looked, people were carrying American flags of all sizes.

To drive the point home, many showed up at No Kings events with expressions of love for this country.

Photo courtesy of the Polk County Democrats

Frog on the scene in Indianola

A PATRIOTIC STAND AGAINST TYRANNY

If you love your country, you should be willing to go to the mat for what makes it great. Many signs emphasized that dissent is a patriotic act.

INVOKING THE CONSTITUTION

The president is supposed to uphold the U.S. Constitution, but Trump flouts that responsibility. Many signs drew inspiration from our nation’s founding document. The beginning of the preamble (“We the People”) was popular.

I got a kick out of this First Amendment fan’s sign. (The Establishment Clause prohibits the government from creating an official religion in the U.S., or promoting one religion over another.)

ECHOES OF HISTORY

Many signs included the words “No Kings since 1776” or similar references to the Revolutionary War era. This protester was channeling Patrick Henry:

Some veterans (or their children) placed their opposition in the context of other wars.

“Orwellian” may be an overused word, but it applies to many of Trump’s lies and actions.

APPEALS TO COURAGE OR BRAVERY

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker told a huge crowd in Chicago,

“History will judge us by where we choose to stand right now, today,” he said. “Future generations will ask: ‘What did we do when fellow human beings face persecution? When our rights were being abridged? When our constitution was under attack?’ They’ll want to know whether we stood up or we stayed silent.”

Some people I saw in Des Moines were on his wavelength.

Mass protests not only convey a message to political leaders, they also remind citizens that they are not alone in objecting to what their government is doing. I suspect that’s why so many people seemed to be in a good mood at this weekend’s events.

Since No Kings focused its opposition to Trump and his agenda, I saw very few signs targeting Iowa Republican politicians. However, a few people slammed the cowardice of Iowa’s Congressional delegation as Trump breaks numerous federal laws and grabs power that belongs to the legislative branch.

USING HUMOR

Democratic State Representative Aime Wichtendahl told the crowd in Des Moines, “Fascists demand that you tremble in fear, and they demand to be taken seriously. So I want you to mock them every chance you get. They are the clowns.”

Many people were already there.

Inspired by a man in Portland, Oregon who wore a frog costume to local protests, many people around the country (including dozens of Iowans) came to No Kings rallies wearing inflatable animal costumes. This image from Des Moines comes courtesy of Tanya Keith:

Lots of people wanted pictures of this dinosaur.

No doubt many could relate to the elephant’s sentiment: “No sign is big enough to list all the reasons I’m here!!”

RELIGIOUS REFERENCES

For generations, Republicans have used Biblical references and Christian doctrine to justify their policy preferences. What might be called the “Christian left” pushed back at No Kings. This sign quoted a passage from Leviticus:

I saw multiple versions of this message:

Members of Iowa Atheists and Freethinkers added “No Gods” to some of their “No Kings” signs.

photo courtesy of Jason Benell

ISSUE-BASED APPEALS

Although most signs broadly condemned authoritarian policies, some zeroed in on specific issues. Here’s one example, denouncing racism and bigotry against LGBTQ people.

I saw many calls to welcome immigrants:

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) drew more criticism than any other federal government entity, by far.

This was one of the few signs I saw that referenced the conflict in Israel and Gaza, as well as ICE:

Economic justice was another popular theme.

Some called attention to Trump’s disastrous tariff policies and their impact on farmers;

(Photo contributed by a Bleeding Heartland reader in Des Moines)

I saw quite a few appeals to save Medicaid or provide affordable health care:

I could have featured 100 more signs. I’ll close with these colorful messages.