‘No Kings’ Activists Plan To Take Over Arizona Cities This Weekend

‘No Kings’ Activists Plan To Take Over Arizona Cities This Weekend

by | Mar 28, 2026 | News

By Staff Reporter |

Protests against President Donald Trump over his mass deportation policies are scheduled to take over the streets across dozens of Arizona cities this weekend. 

The protests were coordinated through the national “No Kings” organization. “No Kings” refers to the belief that Trump has overreached in his powers, much like a monarchy, based on the drastic increase in federal immigration enforcement actions. The organization coordinated protests last spring, summer, and fall. 

Over 7 million activists attended over 2,700 protests across the nation during the latest designated No Kings protest day last October.

Last year’s No Kings protests presented problems as some devolved into looting and rioting. 

Some who hit the streets under the pretense of protest committed crimes that targeted law enforcement and local businesses.

Activists on the lookout for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have targeted local law enforcement under suspicion of their affiliation with the federal agency. Officers conducting operations and arrests for crimes other than immigration have faced off against violent rioters attempting to disrupt what they believe to be deportation proceedings. 

Such was the case in one incident last summer when anti-ICE activists assaulted a Peoria police officer participating in a narcotics raid. 

Saturday’s No Kings protests are scheduled to occur in Ajo, Anthem, Apache Junction, Arivaca, Bisbee, Bullhead City, Casas Adobes, Casa Grande, Chandler, Cottonwood, Douglas, Flagstaff, Florence, Fountain Hills, Gilbert, Glendale, Globe, Goodyear, Green Valley, Kingman, Lake Havasu City, Marana, Maricopa, Mesa, Nogales, Oro Valley, Patagonia, Payson, Phoenix, Prescott, Quartzsite, Queen Creek, Safford, Sahuarita, Scottsdale, Sedona, Show Low, Sierra Vista, Sun City, Sun City West, Superior, Surprise, Tempe, Tubac, Tucson, Tucson Estates, Vail, Willcox, Winslow, and Yuma.

The No Kings coalition has over 200 partners backing it, including: Accountable.Us, American Federation of Teachers, American Federation of Government Employees, ACLU, Bernie Sanders campaign, College Democrats of America, Freedom From Religion Foundation, Greenpeace, Human Rights Campaign, Indivisible, NextGen America, Planned Parenthood, and Sierra Club.

The primary coordinators behind the initial formation of No Kings were the organizations Indivisible and 50501.

The 50501 movement has a chapter in Arizona, which has a private Facebook group containing over 6,500 members. This chapter’s online administrators include Tucson resident Scott Jackson; Erica Connell, a Phoenix drag performer who goes by the name “Weird Violet”; and Gilbert resident Kristin Clement.  

Activists aligned with the 50501 movement attempted to breach the Arizona Capitol last February. 

Other local activist organizations have played a role in organizing No Kings protests as well. Among these are the Party for Socialism and Liberation in Phoenix, East Valley Unite AZ, Gilbert Good Trouble, Mesa Valley Indivisible, Rural Arizona Action, Instituto Power, Progress Arizona, LUCHA Arizona, AZ Resistance Front, and United Campus Workers of Arizona.

Earlier this month, anti-ICE activists disrupted proceedings in the Arizona legislature to protest deportations. 

In addition to educating illegal aliens on avoiding immigration enforcement, these organizations have encouraged the use of hotlines to report and track the whereabouts of federal agents. One hotline, “Migra Watch,” has dedicated caller hotlines for Phoenix, Flagstaff, Tucson, and rural areas, and a text hotline as well. 

Financial data revealed tens of millions of federal dollars flowing into the organizations throwing their support behind No Kings protests.

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Peoria School District Sued By Member Prohibited From Quoting Scripture At Meetings

Peoria School District Sued By Member Prohibited From Quoting Scripture At Meetings

by | Sep 29, 2023 | Education, News

By Corinne Murdock |

The Peoria Unified School District (PUSD) is facing a lawsuit from one of its own board members after prohibiting her from quoting Scripture during meetings.

The First Liberty Institute filed the lawsuit on Tuesday on behalf of board member Heather Rooks. 

The lawsuit noted that public officials have a storied history of quoting Scripture and using religious references to solemnize public occasions, opening with President Joe Biden’s citation of the Book of Isaiah in his 2021 address to the nation following his withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan. Accordingly, Rooks defended her Scripture citations as a continuation of a longstanding American tradition.

“Heather Rooks isn’t a famous historical figure or a household name, but she too wants to be part of the longstanding tradition of government officials solemnizing public occasions in this way,” stated the lawsuit. “To vindicate her statutory and constitutional rights as a Board member and citizen, Rooks respectfully brings this action to declare those rights — and to dispel the confusion that has regrettably clouded a practice as old as the Republic itself.”

Rooks joined the board in January. From her first board meeting until the district ordered her to stop in July, Rooks made it a regular practice of hers to cite Scripture as part of her comments to the public.

The lawsuit noted that after PUSD received a complaint from Secular Communities for Arizona about Rooks’ recitation of Scripture in February, the board’s legal counsel advised board members in an email that they couldn’t pray or recite Scripture during meetings because it allegedly violated the Establishment Clause.

READ THE LAWSUIT HERE

Rooks was one of two board members chastised by district counsel for quoting the Bible during board meetings. The other board member, Rebecca Hill, resigned last month.

Prior to Hill’s resignation, the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) threatened to sue PUSD in May if Hill and Rooks didn’t cease their religious speech. 

“While board members are free to promote their personal religious beliefs however they wish in their personal capacities outside of the school board, as government officials they cannot be allowed to commandeer the board in order to impose their personal religious beliefs on district students, parents, and employees,” stated FFRF. 

Around the time of the lawsuit threat, PUSD held a public presentation warning against Scripture readings. The presentation was reportedly shared later with staff and parents. 

Andy Gould, senior counsel at First Liberty, said in a press release that Rooks’ use of the Bible was part of a historical American tradition.

“Heather takes her responsibilities serving the parents and students in her community seriously, and quotes Bible verses as a source of courage and strength in performing those duties,” said Gould. “Like so many dedicated public leaders throughout our history, Heather most certainly can use inspirational quotes from religious, historical, and philosophical sources and figures as a source of personal inspiration, as well as encouragement to the community at-large.”

Rooks stated in the press release that she was grateful for her membership on the PUSD board, and that Scripture serves as a source of encouragement. 

“As a member of the school board, I understand the weight and significance of all of our decisions, and simply find quoting scripture out loud to be encouraging to myself and to many in attendance,” said Rooks.

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.