Anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ protest in Philly on Saturday will prompt road closures
Demonstrators will march in Philly just days after Trump's controversial move to send troops to Los Angeles in response to protests against ICE.
Protesters in Philadelphia are slated to hit the streets Saturday, just days after 15 anti-ICE demonstrators were arrested following a skirmish with police officers in Center City.
The protest in Philadelphia is part of a nationwide “No Kings” action planned by critics of President Donald Trump’s administration, and will coincide with the president’s 79th birthday and a controversial military parade taking place in Washington Saturday evening.
» READ MORE: Live coverage of Philadelphia's No Kings Protest
“The ‘No Kings’ mobilization is a direct response to President Trump’s self-aggrandizing $100 million military parade and birthday celebration,” organizers said, “an event funded by taxpayers while millions are told there’s no money for Social Security, SNAP, Medicaid, or public schools.”
The demonstrations are also taking place in a tense environment following Trump’s decision to send federalized California National Guard troops to confront people protesting Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions in Los Angeles. The move was blocked in a rebuke by Senior District Judge Charles R. Breyer, but an appeals court temporarily halted his ruling Thursday evening.
“We respect everyone’s First Amendment rights to protest and free speech,” Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker said at a news conference Thursday, “but we want to be equally clear: The Philadelphia Police Department will maintain public safety and order in our streets and our neighborhoods because that’s their mission.”
Here’s what you should know:
‘No Kings’ Trump protest in Philly
Time: Noon to 3 p.m.
March route: From LOVE Park down the Benjamin Franklin Parkway to the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Philadelphia isn’t the only city where protests are planned. The national effort includes rallies and marches across Pennsylvania and South Jersey, including Elkins Park, Havertown, Ardmore, Conshohocken, King of Prussia, Norristown, and Haddon Township.
It’s the second “No Kings” rally in Philadelphia since Trump’s inauguration in January. In April, thousands of protesters rallied at Independence Mall to reject “the rule of a king.”
» READ MORE: 'No Kings' Philly protest: Everything you should know
Road closures in Center City
City officials said street closures will begin early Saturday morning and continue rolling throughout the day as protesters march from LOVE Park to the Art Museum.
The following streets are expected to close from 3 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, at the discretion of police:
Eakins Oval between Kelly Drive and Martin Luther King Drive (in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art)
Kelly Drive inbound (closed at Fairmount Avenue)
Streets will also close near the march’s assembly area beginning at about 10 a.m. until about 1:30 p.m. They include:
Arch Street from 15th Street to 16th Street
16th Street from John F. Kennedy Boulevard to Cherry Street
Benjamin Franklin Parkway from 16th Street to 17th Street
Rolling closures along the march route will begin around 11:30 a.m. until about 2:30 p.m. They include:
Benjamin Franklin Parkway (all lanes) from 18th Street to Eakins Oval (including closure of cross streets)
The following streets will close from about 11:30 a.m. until about 5 p.m.:
2200-2300 Benjamin Franklin Parkway (including closure of cross streets)
Spring Garden Street from Pennsylvania Avenue to Benjamin Franklin Parkway
23rd Street from Pennsylvania Avenue to Benjamin Franklin Parkway
Kelly Drive (both directions) from Eakins Oval to Sedgley Drive
Spring Garden Street Bridge (inbound)
SEPTA and parking restrictions
SEPTA bus routes near the Art Museum will shift Saturday from 3 a.m. through about 5 p.m.
Elsewhere in Center City, buses will be detoured around street closures beginning around 8 a.m. through 5 p.m.
Specific route changes are available on SEPTA’s website.
Other road closures Saturday
The anti-Trump protest isn’t the only event that will close streets in Philadelphia Saturday. Here’s a rundown of other closures across the city:
Army 250th anniversary celebration
The Penn & Franklin Chapter of the Association of the United States Army is hosting a three-day celebration of the Army’s 250th birthday. The full schedule is available here, and it will result in some road closures.
The following streets will be closed beginning at 6 a.m. until about 10 p.m. Saturday, according to city officials:
Market Street between Fourth Street and Sixth Street
Chestnut Street between Fifth Street and Sixth Street
Arch Street between Fourth Street and Sixth Street
Ranstead Street between Fourth Street and Fifth Street
Sixth Street between Race Street and Chestnut Street
Fifth Street between Race Street and Chestnut Street
SEPTA buses will detour from their normal routes along these roads Saturday from about 4 a.m. until about 11 p.m.