At Ella Bowman’s first “No Kings” rally, she knew what she wanted to say. She also wasn’t sure how people would react.

“It was an honor,” Bowman said. “For them to invite a transgender woman to talk to them? It was such an honor for me.”

But Bowman was nervous to speak about topics she said people have a “hard line” on, like transgender bathroom rights.

“I’ve got my can of Mace here, just in case,” Bowman said, unzipping her coat to reveal the self-defense tool. “I thought about wearing a bulletproof vest that I have … but it turned out to be very peaceful.”

Organizers say being nonviolent is a hallmark of the “No Kings” movement, which protests President Donald Trump and policies they say are authoritarian. Saturday marked the third international “No Kings” protest, with over 3,000 events nationally.

Bowman is no stranger to conflict. When she came out in 2021 at age 61, she faced backlash she said prompted her to resign as Oakland’s town manager, and shortly after faced “hateful” rhetoric as Winslow’s town manager.

But this is what made her want to speak in Waterville on Saturday.

“It was a chance for me to get in front of people, to talk about our lives,” Bowman said. “There’s so many people that don’t understand.”

The Trump Administration has moved to ban gender-affirming care for children and has clashed with Gov. Janet Mills over transgender athletes’ participation in sports.

Saturday’s protests came as Trump has fallen in popularity amid an ongoing war in Iran, a partial government shutdown affecting air travel and a continued crackdown on immigration that has left Mainers in custody.

Dozens of protests took place across Maine. In Portland, a silhouette of Trump’s face soared high above the crowd, reading “Dump Him.”

Organizers estimated Portland’s protest drew “thousands,” while the Lewiston-Auburn rally saw nearly 2,000 protesters and Waterville and Augusta each drew about 1,000 people.

Amid chants and speeches in Portland, Lisa Shepherd stood with her husband and daughter, knitting resistance hats, first popularized in Norway.

“We just want to be a part of the community and show our support,” Shepherd said. “This is my daughter’s future.”

YOUNG PEOPLE GET INVOLVED

Elizabeth Leonard, an organizer for Waterville’s protest, said it’s been a “slow process” to draw young people into “No Kings” protests, but that she’s noticed an increase.

In Auburn, 18-year-old Kai Thomas said she was surprised to see other young Mainers at the protest. She said she found this encouraging, as did Kirk Read, 67, who called it a “unified fight.”

“While this was our nation when us older people were younger, we’re going to be passing it to a younger generation in a much worse situation than we’ve ever seen,” Read said. “We need to come together to make this the best possible outcome we can.”

In Waterville, an older crowd dominated, but speaker Maddie Andreozzi, 15, drew a younger crowd with her speech, where she spoke about living in fear that immigration enforcement will take her friends away.

FUNKY COSTUMES STAND OUT

In Waterville, sisters Kim Quirion, 69, and Noreen Hart, 64, said they had too many reasons to protest to name.

“There’s too much to put on a sign,” Quirion said.

The sisters dressed as a scarecrow (with a lion’s tail) and a witch, inspired by The Wizard of Oz. “I’m Melania (Trump) today,” Hart said of her wicked witch outfit.

Across the state, protesters donned inflatable animal costumes, sequins and bright colors, many to combat the idea that “No Kings” protests are hateful, or negative.

Pets also came in costume. Bailey, a 3-year-old golden retriever, attended Saturday’s “No Kings” protest in Portland with his owner, Sarah Kinney, of Portland.

“He hates the king of shame,” Kinney said. “For me, there are too many reasons to be here.”

What were largely joyful protests had somber moments. As Waterville’s protest finished, Beth Schiller, a Waterville resident, read the names of people who died in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, or at the hands of ICE agents, since Jan. 20, 2025.

After Schiller finished reading 42 names, speaker Peter Wohl asked protesters to depart in silence “holding the names of this small number of the current regime’s victims close to your hearts.”

Speakers across Maine criticized immigration enforcement, as well as foreign wars in the Middle East and called for transparency and action regarding the Epstein files.

At the Waterville protest Bowman also focused on women’s rights.

“We stand at a crossroads where the right to bodily autonomy is on fire,” Bowman said. “Whether it is the right to reproductive healthcare or the right to life-saving gender-affirming care, the core issue is the same.”

Despite her nerves, Bowman’s speech elicited cheers from the crowd, and heard honks from passersby on the street.

“Start misbehaving,” Bowman said. “And be a warrior.”

Staff Writers Matthew Jaroncyk and Sydney Richelieu and Staff Photographers Anna Chadwick, Russ Dillingham and Brianna Soukup contributed to this story.