On Saturday, March 28, a crowd of hundreds gathered on either side of El Camino Real in Menlo Park by Cafe Borrone and Kepler’s Books to protest President Donald Trump in the third “No Kings” protest.
The crowd skewed older, with most participants over 45, many 60 or older. Some of the older participants said they have been protesting since the Vietnam War era. The Menlo Park “No Kings” protest was organized by Menlo Park Speaks Out and the League of Women Voters of South San Mateo County, according to the event’s Mobilize page. Mary Watson founded Menlo Park Speaks Out and helped organize the protest.
“Probably the biggest obstacle we have [to getting people to come out to the protest is] people [who think] ‘Okay, what difference does it make whether I go out and I stand for two hours on El Camino or not?’” Watson said.
This protest coincided with other “No Kings” events across the country, including other cities in the Bay Area like Redwood City, Palo Alto and San Francisco.
“I think Donald Trump pays attention to numbers,” 85-year-old veteran Ernie Chilberg said.
Watson said people might come to protest in Menlo Park instead of a larger city because of the ease of access or the sense of community locally. Many protesters echoed this sentiment. According to Watson, gathering locally can give people a “we’re all in this together” kind of feeling, and be therapeutic to many.
“This is the community I live in,” protester Michael Braude said. “I think it’s important for the people in every community to show how they feel about this. It’s not gonna be the largest protest … but every community is important, every community counts, and I think showing up for your community is really what’s important.”
Protesters held signs relating to a broad range of issues, from the war in Iran to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). Chilberg held a sign in protest of the war in Iran. He said if the US commits troops to Iran, it wouldn’t be good, and the US would “just bring back a lot of body bags.”
“I was in the military,” Chilberg said. “Trump never served in the military. He doesn’t know a goddamn thing about it. I [was] only [in it] two years, ten months [and] twenty-one days. Not a life of it. I got sucked into the thing because of Vietnam … The passage of history and time will show that this was a horrible boondoggle.”
Despite the age skewing older, there were still a few young people at the protest. Sacred Heart Preparatory junior Marie Djacga attended the protest with two of her friends, who are also Sacred Heart juniors. The group agreed they wanted to see more young people protesting, especially on a Saturday. Djacga said that protesting was an effective means of change.
“I mean, they wouldn’t put it in the First Amendment if it wasn’t effective,” Djacga said.
Trump has reacted to the “No Kings” protests in the past, specifically the Oct. 18, 2025 protests, when he posted a video onto the social media site Truth Social with an AI-generated video depicting him flying over protests in a fighter jet marked “King Trump” dumping what appeared to be feces onto protesters below. Trump has rejected the idea that he has acted like a king, saying he has to “go through hell to get stuff approved”. Trump continues to challenge norms and precedents in office, from attempts to end birthright citizenship to limiting press access in the Pentagon. Djacga has some advice for young people.
“Pay attention,” Djacga said. “It matters. Pay attention. Don’t look away.”
Since Chilberg is 85, he said he would vote in “at most two more elections,” and thinks it’s important for more young people to get involved in politics.
“Use your voices, show up for a Democratic Party meeting,” Chilberg said. “It’s important, they’re the next generation … You don’t have to be a politician [to get involved].”
