Protesters line Delsea drive in Glassboro to protest No Kings. Glassboro, N.J. Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025. (Sports Editor / Sarah Shockey)
Nearly 1,300 people lined Delsea Drive Saturday afternoon in Glassboro to participate in the “No Kings” movement.
Protestors lined Delsea Drive between the intersections of William Dalton and Charles III Drive beginning at 2 p.m. Rather than march, they held signs, wore costumes, and chanted phrases denouncing President Donald Trump and his administration.
Many passing cars honked their horns in support. Honks were provoked by a “Honk if you aren’t on the Epstein list” sign held by participants on the corner of Delsea and Dalton Drive.
The sign referenced the hypothesized list of clients and documented visitors to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s island estate. The list has been a hot topic in American politics as of late, with some information regarding visitors having already been released.
A few cars held “No Kings” signs out their windows and sunroofs, while others lashed out at the protestors in anger.
The No Kings protest in Glassboro was just one of the thousands of demonstrations that took place on Saturday across the United States.
Known as No Kings Day, a follow-up to the same demonstrations in June, nearly 2,600 protests were planned across all 50 states. Saturday saw over seven million attendees, two million more than this past summer.
Glassboro-resident Elizabeth Volz, 57, organized the event. Volz is the administrator of United Progressive Democrats in Gloucester County and a ¾ time faculty member in the Rowan University College of Science and Mathematics.
“I think it’s really important to have a national day of action,” Volz said. “We want to be visually out here so that people can see how much support there is for fixing the things that are being broken by this administration.”
Volz walked back and forth along Delsea Drive, armed with a megaphone, ramping up the crowd. During one particular chant, she yelled out to several different marginalized groups and government services that have been attacked since President Trump took office.
Volz asked the protestors, “What do we do?” Their response: “Fight back!”
“I think people understand what is happening is wrong,” Volz said. “People do not want what is happening, but they have to stand up and they have to be seen. That’s what these [No Kings protests] are for.”
People of all ages, races, and economic backgrounds gathered on Saturday in Glassboro in support of the No Kings cause.
Retirees Jeanne Hill, 74, of Franklinville, Kathy Iannacone, 75, of Williamstown, and Paula Dibruno, 80, of Deptford, attended the protest together.
Iannacone, a former French teacher at Rowan University, protested in support of women’s and civil rights in the 1970s. 55 years later, she says she’s protested more than she ever has before.
“Never thought we’d have to be fighting for some of the same rights and more,” Iannacone said. “We’re patriots.”
Hill was very vocal in her disapproval of President Trump. She felt she couldn’t just sit back and watch the world go by her.
“I can’t stand back and just let it take its course,” Hill said. “I’ve got to do something.”
Both Dibruno and Hill were motivated to exercise their right to protest when thinking of their grandchildren. Dibruno became emotional when speaking about hers.
Choking back tears, she says can’t be satisfied with the world they’re growing up in.
“I can’t leave to my grandchildren what I have, I can’t,” Dibruno said. “They gotta have what I have.”
In response to Dibruno, Hill stated “exactly.”
Hill shares that same sentiment of action as Dibruno for her family.
“I have to be able to tell my grandkids I stood up for you,” Hill said.
Senior theater arts major, Emile Wong, 21, came to No Kings with friends from her department. Wong’s group came dressed in rainbow colors in support of LGBTQ+ rights.
Since taking office, President Trump has taken major action against queer people in the United States, including banning gender-affirming care, barring transgender people from the military, and cutting funds to HIV and LGBTQ+ healthcare.
As someone who identifies as queer, Wong said they came to protest against hate.
“We have been falling down a really deep rabbit hole of white supremacy and fascism,” Wong said. “No matter who they are or what they believe, people deserve to be safe and happy and secure.”
Travis Gensamer, 36, of Glassboro, came dressed in a Captain America mask. He’s a Rowan radio, television, and film alumni and a member of the class of 2013.
While he was a student at Rowan, Gensamer participated in the Occupy Wall Street protests his sophomore year. They stationed themselves outside Esbjornson Gymnasium.
Now over two decades later, he’s protesting again alongside his dog, dressed in a matching Captain America costume.
“It shows that we have freedom of speech, which is great, but it also shows how many people are uncomfortable and unhappy,” Gensamer said. “We need to fight fascists across the board.”
Jeff and Diana Krouse, 71, of Turnersville stood together on the side of the road. Jeff Krouse served as a diver in the Navy for 26 years. A proud veteran, he wore a Navy baseball cap and draped a “Veterans against Trump” flag over the road.
Jeff Krouse called on other veterans to speak out against Trump.
“They[veterans] need to get together,” Jeff Krouse said. “They’re taking away our rights, and they’re destroying the Constitution.”
Several other groups were in attendance at Saturday’s No Kings protest, including immigrants, pastors, and farmers. For fear of retaliation or their safety, they declined to comment.
After 90 minutes of protesting, police officers ordered people to disperse at 3:30 p.m., the time of which the event was slated to end.
Glassboro was a small fraction of the millions of protestors who took to the streets for No Kings on Saturday. It’s moments like these that remind Gensamer of how like-minded Americans can be, and how many share the same desire for change.
“There’s no room for hate in this world,” Gensamer said. “As soon as we can bustle it out and introduce more love and acceptance, then the world will be a better place.”
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