LIVE UPDATES: No Kings flagship rally in St. Paul

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - St. Paul will be the site of the flagship No Kings rally, which could be the biggest protest in Minnesota’s history as thousands of similar protests are held across the country.

FOX 9 will be streaming the marches and rally live on FOX9.com, FOX LOCAL and YouTube. Coverage will start on Saturday at noon. 

Live coverage of the rally can be viewed in the player above. Live aerial footage can be viewed below.

This story will be updated with the latest details from the rally. 

READ MORE: No Kings rally: St. Paul prepares for potentially historic event this weekend

LIVE UPDATES

1:25 p.m. – Robert De Niro sent a recorded "love letter" message to Minnesota, praising the "courage and commitment" of protesters. 

1:15 p.m. – The opening speaker for the No Kings rally praised Minnesotans for their resolve during Operation Metro Surge, saying they "chased out pure evil."

1 p.m. – Aerial footage shows the massive scale of the No Kings rally as protesters march to the Minnesota State Capitol.

12:40 p.m. – Thousands of people are marching to the Minnesota State Capitol ahead of the No Kings rally. 

11:40 a.m. – Crowds are gathering at multiple parks in St. Paul before plans to march on the Minnesota State Capitol.

Kick off marches and Capitol rally

Local perspective:

The day’s events will begin with marches launching from three locations in St. Paul:

• St. Paul College, located at 235 Marshall Avenue (1.5 mile walk to the Capitol)
• Harriet Island, located at 110 Harriet Island Road (0.6 mile walk to the Capitol)
• Western Sculpture Park, located at 387 Marion Street (0.5 mile walk to the Capitol)

Participants will gather at noon at each site for a brief program before marching to the State Capitol for a 2 p.m. rally featuring speakers, including lawmakers and advocates, as well as musical performances.

St. Paul road closures 

Traffic impacts:

Traffic disruptions are expected throughout the day due to large crowds and road closures. Previous No Kings rallies brought about 100,000 protesters to Minneapolis.

St. Paul police say several streets and highway exit ramps will be temporarily closed on Saturday due to the protests. Streets highlighted in blue below are expected to be closed from 11:45 a.m. through 1:30 p.m. while the streets highlighted in red are closed Saturday morning through the evening.

READ MORE: No Kings rally in St. Paul on March 28: Everything you need to know 

The temporary road closures include: 

• Wabasha Street from Kellogg Boulevard to 12th Street
• John Ireland Boulevard to 12th Street
• Eastbound Concordia Ave. at Western Avenue
• Eastbound and westbound Kellogg Boulevard at John Ireland Boulevard
• Westbound Rondo Avenue at Marion Street
• Eastbound Ravoux Street at Marion Street
• Southbound and northbound Marion at Fuller Avenue
• Southbound and northbound Rice Street at Fuller Avenue
• Eastbound and westbound I-94 Marion Street Exits
• Northbound I-35E 11th Street Exit
• Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard at University Avenue to Sherburne Avenue

Organizers strongly encourage attendees to bike, carpool or take public transportation as parking is limited.  

List of speakers at St. Paul No Kings rally

Who is talking:

The full list of speakers includes: 

• Bernie Sanders, U.S. Senator from Vermont
• Joan Baez, singer and activist
• Minister JaNaé Bates, ISAIAH, and multifaith leaders
• Nick Benson, flight data activist, MN50501
• Katie Bethell, MoveOn Civic Action
• State Representative Shelley Buck
• Malika Dahir, Reviving the Islamic Sisterhood for Empowerment
• Natalie Ehret, Haven Watch
• Attorney General Keith Ellison
• Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan
• Jane Fonda, actor and activist
• Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin, Indivisible
• Saint Paul Mayor Kaohly Her
• Imam Makram El-Amin
• Deepender Singh Mayell, MN-ACLU
• U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-05)
• Carolina Ortiz, COPAL
• Sarah Parker, Voices of Florida Project and 50501
• Maggie Rogers, singer-songwriter and activist
• AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler
• Bruce Springsteen, musician and activist
• SEIU President April Verrett
• Governor Tim Walz
• American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten
• Robert Weissman, Public Citizen
• Emcee Ash Woodard-Henderson

Rallies planned across Minnesota

What you can do:

There are dozens No Kings rallies scheduled all over Minnesota on March 28. 

To see if there is a rally in your area, click here.  Some require sign-ups to see the exact location. 

What is No Kings?

What they're saying:

The No Kings rally in St. Paul is the national flagship event, one of more than 3,000 protests planned around the country in opposition to what organizers call the Trump administration’s authoritarianism and corruption. Organizers say the movement has grown rapidly, citing more than five million participants at last June’s events and over seven million at rallies last October.

The event is part of a nationwide movement, with more than 3,300 demonstrations planned across the country Saturday, but the flagship rally is happening in St. Paul.

The stage is already set on the Capitol grounds, and organizers say this could be the largest protest ever seen in the state.

"It's just been so uplifting to know that there are this many other people who support the same things that we do and feel the same way," said Kristin LaDuke, who plans to attend the rally.

"Given what has taken place in Minneapolis and St. Paul for the last four months we feel it is important for us to show our disapproval for the way things have been going in our country and show our support for Minnesota," said Bob LaDuke, who will also plans to attend the event.

"I think it’s a perfect place to be the flagship location, and I'm really excited and proud to be part of that," said his wife Kristin.

White House response

The other side:

The White House Regional Press Secretary released the following statement:

"The only people who care about these Trump Derangement Therapy Sessions are the reporters who are paid to cover them."

PoliticsSt. PaulDonald J. Trump