PHOTOS: Thousands march in Ottawa County as part of nationwide 'No Kings' protests

OTTAWA COUNTY — Thousands of people came out to protest President Donald Trump's Administration on Saturday, March 28, as part of a nationwide effort called "No Kings."

Protests popped up in all 50 states and even appeared overseas as far as Italy, France, Germany and Spain.

Saturday’s day of protest was the third of its kind, following similar nationwide demonstrations last year in June and October.

Protesters marched in the thousands in major cities, including New York City, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Minneapolis, while smaller demonstrations also snaked through suburbs and rural communities, including the lakeshore in Ottawa County.

"I'm here to protest because everything seems out of whack," said Deborah, who attended the Holland protest. "Everything seems like it's not as it should be, and it just keeps getting worse and worse. ... It seems we've done absolutely everything we can to disparage everything."

"I'm here to support my daughters and the rest of the people here who believe that we need to speak up and stand up for our rights in our country," said Shelly, who attended the Holland protest.

Protests popped up in Holland, Grand Haven, Saugatuck-Douglas as well as Grand Rapids.

"We're tired of this tyrannical president that we have starting wars, and he's a felon and a rapist and he's horrible," said James Irwin, of Saugatuck, who attended the Holland protest. "We don't want him leading our country, and we're tired of it, and our politicians should do what the people want, and we're here to show everyone what we want."

The grassroots group Holland Zeeland Indivisible, which helped organize the event in Holland, said its official headcount was 3,200 people. Indivisible works to stop the rise of authoritarianism in the United States and to defend democracy.

"There was lots of great energy; the Singing Resistance was an uplifting addition," said Lois Maassen. "People were clever and impassioned and kind and well-informed and concerned."

In Grand Haven, hundreds also protested in "No Kings" activities.

"I'm here because I think we need to defend our democracy," said Marge, who attended the Grand Haven event. "I had my 82nd birthday yesterday, and this is my birthday present for everybody that wants to have a democracy from now on."

"This is what democracy looks like," said John, 80, who attended the Grand Haven event. "It's not a spectator sport; you've got to participate, and this is it."

"I'm out here to stop fascism from advancing in America," said Jim, who was in Grand Haven.

"What brought me out today is the 41,000 people that are being housed in immigration detention camps, and somebody has to speak for them, and this practice of criminalizing being an immigrant and then imprisoning people has to stop," said Sydney, who attended the Grand Haven event.

Here are photos and video from the Holland and Grand Haven protests:

Holland

Grand Haven

— ONN photographer Cathy Seaver contributed to this story.