LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Thousands of demonstrators were gathering in Los Angeles and throughout the Southland Saturday to protest the policies of the Trump administration in the nationwide "No Kings Day of Defiance" demonstrations.

Multiple demonstrations were taking place across Los Angeles, Long Beach, Santa Monica, and other sites in Los Angeles County and Orange County. The largest crowd was expected in downtown Los Angeles, where a march began at about 10:30 a.m. and worked its way down Broadway, entering Pershing Square at about 11:30 a.m.

Streets were closed in the area and many bus routes were being interrupted.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Police Chief Jim McDonnell held a morning news conference to urge the crowds to remain lawful and to ensure the public that adequate resources were in place to keep the peace.

Bass said public safety agencies have "pre-deployed and pre- positioned" in preparation for the demonstrations, which are meant as a counterpoint to a planned military parade in Washington, D.C. on Saturday evening that coincides with President Donald Trump's 79th birthday.

Bass said the Los Angeles Fire Department is keeping Friday night's shift on call "to ensure we have the maximum number of personnel to effectively support our entire city," and is deploying resources to ensure medical assistance and firefighting support if needed.

The California Highway Patrol is also continuing to provide enhanced support, and the city's Emergency Operations Center is coordinating logistics and is "poised to escalate" to a higher level of operations if necessary, Bass said.

The mayor repeated her call for protesters to remain peaceful.

"Please, please do not give the administration an excuse to intervene. Let's make sure we show the world the best of Los Angeles and our country. Let's stand in contrast to the provocation, escalation and violence," she said.

The mayor earlier said the nightly 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew covering a one-square-mile section of downtown Los Angeles will remain in place indefinitely, including Saturday.

The curfew affects a portion downtown between the Golden State (5) and Harbor (110) freeways, and from the Santa Monica (10) Freeway to where the Arroyo Seco (110) Parkway and Golden State Freeway merge. That area includes Skid Row, Chinatown, and the Arts and Fashion districts.

McDonnell said police were expecting "probably tens of thousands" of people overall at multiple Los Angeles protests.

Demonstrations were scheduled at Los Angeles City Hall and at Palisades Park in Santa Monica, at Culver City City Hall, Torrance City Hall, Bixby Park in Long Beach and at La Palma Park in Anaheim and East Main Street and Newport Avenue in Tustin, among other sites.

The "No Kings" events are billed as a peaceful way to oppose the administration's "authoritarianism and show the world what democracy really looks like," say organizers at 50501, a national group that stands for 50 protests, 50 states, one movement.

"They've defied our courts, deported Americans, disappeared people off the streets, attacked our civil rights, and slashed our services," according to a website for the event, referring to the Trump administration. "The corruption has gone too. far. No thrones. No crowns. No kings."

Opponents of the military parade -- the nation's first since 1991's National Victory Celebration, which was timed to welcome returning veterans of the 100-day Persian Gulf War -- say it is a vanity project of a nascent dictator.

"President Trump wants tanks in the street and a made-for-TV display of dominance for his birthday," No Kings organizers say. "A spectacle meant to look like strength. But real power isn't staged in Washington. It rises up everywhere else."

The Orange County Republican Party had a different view.

"We agree that there should be no kings. And here in California, we've seen authoritarianism. The leftists flooding the streets today are protesting the wrong man," the party said in a post on X, accompanied by a graphic depicting California Gov. Gavin Newsom sitting on a throne and dressed like a king.

The rally at Los Angeles City Hall was taking place near the scene of recent clashes between law enforcement and protesters around immigration issues. Trump has deployed thousands of troops, including 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines, to Los Angeles, citing a need to support local law enforcement.

Although the protests were planned as a counterpoint to Saturday's military parade in Washington, D.C., the Los Angeles gatherings were focused largely on Trump's immigration policies, in light of the week-long and frequently violent protests that took place here after federal immigration enforcement raids on June 6.

Trump and U.S. Homeland Security officials have defended the immigration raids. The president won election in 2016 and 2024 on a platform of securing the southern border and deporting those in the United States illegally, and officials have said many of those targeted in the raids have long criminal histories.

"The Biden Administration and Governor Newscum flooded America with 21 Million Illegal Aliens, destroying Schools, Hospitals and Communities, and consuming untold Billions of Dollars in Free Welfare. All of them have to go home, as do countless other Illegals and Criminals, who will turn us into a bankrupt Third World Nation," Trump posted Friday on Truth Social.

"America was invaded and occupied. I am reversing the Invasion. It's called Remigration. Our courageous ICE Officers, who are daily being subjected to doxxing and murder threats, are HEROES. We will always have their back as they carry out this noble mission. America will be for Americans again!"

Ahead of Saturday's events, McDonnell, L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna and CHP Deputy Commissioner Ezery Beauchamp held a joint news conference at LAPD headquarters on Friday to discuss law-enforcement preparations aimed at keeping the numerous demonstrations peaceful.

Their message was clear: Law enforcement is fully prepared and will arrest anyone who commits a crime or incites violence.

"Let me absolutely clear on this -- if you come to Los Angeles to exercise your rights peacefully, we are here to protect that, but if you come to our city with the intent to commit crimes, damage property or harm others, including our officers, you will be arrested," McDonnell said.

"We will not allow violence, vandalism or threats to public safety to undermine the rights of those who are demonstrating lawfully."

Luna echoed McDonnell's message, saying "extreme violence is not going to be tolerated."

"If you're out there throwing rocks, Molotov cocktails, high-grade pyrotechnics and all these other weapons, you're going to get caught, and you're going to get arrested," Luna said.

Luna did not disclose how many law-enforcement personnel will be on duty, but emphasized that they are "heavily deployed" -- which he hopes will create a "calming" presence for protesters.

Said Beauchamp: "We have activated eight of our Special Response Teams, which are specially trained officers, and they will all be activated working throughout the state of California. In L.A. County, we are on tactical alert, and for us, what that means is all days off are canceled for all CHP officers, so that we can provide the highest level of safety and service to everyone here in Los Angeles County."

Suju Vijayan, co-leader of the East Valley Indivisibles progressive coalition, which will be on hand Saturday at a Studio City "No Kings" event, said the protests have a special meaning in Los Angeles, site of civil unrest over Trump's policies last week and the place where military troops are now stationed as a result of the president's orders.

"This is pushback against the idea of a Soviet-style military parade and the overreach where Trump is trying to turn himself from president into a king," Vijayan told City News Service. "We in Los Angeles have seen the overreach in person, so No Kings Day has taken on even more significance."

She said the sense that Trump "puts himself above the people of this country" has inspired residents to speak out about the administration's perceived transgressions.

"There's tremendous energy around these events," she said.

Besides the law-enforcement presence, about seven medical task forces are ready to assist anyone who may become ill or experience an injury, L.A. Fire Department Capt. Erik Scott said Friday. Those teams will consist of a fire engine and an ambulance -- two to focus on fires and the other five to respond to medical emergencies, he said.

There will also be a so-called advanced provider unit that will include a nurse practitioner and a physician assistant on an ambulance. Scott said they will be able to address any possible mass injuries, or if a large number of people are arrested and are in need of medical assistance.

A full list of nationwide demonstration sites can be found at nokings.org/. The Southland No Kings events and times include the following:

-- Anaheim, 4 p.m., La Palma Park, 1151 N. La Palma Parkway;

-- Antelope Valley, 11 a.m., 10th Street West and Rancho Vista Boulevard;

-- Dana Point, 1 p.m., Selva Road and Pacific Coast Highway;

-- El Segundo, 10 a.m., El Segundo sign, Imperial Avenue and Main Street;

-- Huntington Beach, noon, Pacific Coast Highway and Huntington Beach Pier;

-- Laguna Beach, noon, Pacific Coast Highway and Main;

-- Long Beach, 9 a.m., Bixby Park Annex, East Ocean Boulevard and Junipero Avenue;

-- Los Angeles: 9:45 a.m., Los Angeles City Hall, 200 North Spring Street;

-- Malibu: noon, Malibu Library, 23519 West Civic Center Way;

-- Pasadena: 2 p.m., Lake and Colorado;

-- Santa Clarita, 10:30 a.m., McBean Parkway and Valencia Boulevard;

-- Santa Monica, 11 a.m., Palisades Park and Ocean Ave;

-- Studio City, 11 a.m., Southeast Corner, Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Ventura Boulevard;

-- Torrance, 11 a.m. Torrance City Hall, 3031 Torrance Blvd.;

-- West Hollywood, 11 a.m., West Hollywood Park, 647 N. San Vicente Blvd.;

-- Whittier, 2 p.m., Whittier City Hall, 13230 Penn St., and

-- Woodland Hills, 11 a.m., Topanga Canyon Boulevard and Victory Boulevard.

Bill Handel