Thousands of people turned out at No Kings Day protests held throughout DuPage County on Saturday, including several that lined Roosevelt Road.

Hundreds of protesters gathered at each of 10 intersections along Roosevelt Road from Villa Park west to Wheaton as part of the protests, which also were held in other locations in DuPage.

Organized by Indivisible DuPage with assistance from local Democratic organizations, each location had a designated theme such as justice, freedom, free speech, clean air and water, fair elections, due process, health care, equality, peace and democracy.

Pakistani native Sana Hameed of Glen Ellyn said she came to the rally because she has witnessed countries in Southeast Asia with dictators.

“I don’t want to see that in the United States,” Hameed said, “The United States has a true democracy, and I would love to see it continue.”

“This situation we are experiencing is once in a lifetime and never to be experienced again. Anybody who is an American should be devastated,” said Susan Dahl, a Glen Ellyn resident.

Glen Ellyn’s Nancy Egerton first stopped at the Lisle No Kings protest before heading to Roosevelt Road.

Donned in a red, white and blue shirt, she said she also has a sign that said, “I heart USA.”

“I love my country and that is why I am here,” Egerton said.

“It is powerful to see people come out and say, ‘this is the first time I am protesting because what choice do we have,’” Egerton said.

Nancy and Dave Dorjath of Glen Ellyn attended the protest, holding a sign that said “Hate Won’t Make America Great.”

Dave Dorjath said they came out because they are “frustrated with the way things are going.”

“We love America, and we want to make sure it is for all,” he said.

Stacy Slater, who works with the Democratic Party of Milton Township, was at the corner of President Street and Roosevelt Road where the theme was “free speech for all.”

Slater said she was optimistic about the turn out for the first No Kings protest held along Roosevelt Road.

“This is not about being left or right, this is a moral stance,” Slater said.

James Rospond of Glen Ellyn attended the protest in response to how migrants are being treated.

“[President Trump] said he was going to go for the worst of the worst, and he is taking anybody, “even young children,” Rospond said.

Rospond said previous protests in which he’s participated were well attended but “nothing like this” noting the significant support from motorists on Roosevelt Road.

In the four months, since the last No Kings Day protests, Rospond said, “I think people realize it is just getting worse.”

And for young people just getting started, he said, “they have it so much harder.”

“Somehow we have to make this more even,” Rospond said. “We did not have 500 billionaires like there are now. This country has got to change.”

Standing at County Farm and Roosevelt roads, Valerie DeWolf of Wheaton said she found the inspiration for her sign “My Aunt Tifa Says No Kings” from Etsy.

DeWolf said she attended the rally “because it is important to stand up for everybody’s rights.”

She added that being angry is no longer sufficient.

“We need to do something,” DeWolf said. “This is the very least I could do to make my voice heard and stand up for those who can’t.”

“I read about this stuff in history,” Bob Fritz of Winfield said. “I never thought I would have to [deal with] someone trying to take away our democracy.”

Fritz attended the rally with his wife Sue.

“It is about respecting people and respecting humanity,” she said.

U.S. Marine Corps veteran Darren Robinson of Wheaton said, “I volunteered because I wanted to protect or freedoms, democracy and our Constitution. I believe the current administration is doing everything they can to end our democracy and end our freedoms and turn us into an authoritarian regime.”

“I did not serve to protect that,” Robinson said. “I did not serve to protect a person. I served to protect our rights and what our country’s forefathers intended.”

“Everyone here, unless you are a native American,” are immigrants, Robinson said.

Earlier in the day, more than 1,000 protestors gathered at the corner of Janes Avenue and Boughton Road in Bolingbrook extending all the way to the Interstate 355 intersection, beating earlier estimates of about 400 participants.

The event was organized by Working Families Will County and Invisible Illinois, said state Sen. Rachel Ventura, D-Joliet, who dressed up as a frog for the event in support of a man dressed in a frog suit was pepper sprayed by federal agents in Portland.

The large crowd included veterans, parents, grandparents and children – some dressed in Halloween costumes.

First time protester Kristin Kozlowski, a Bolingbrook resident who brought her two sons, came to ensure that her children “will be able to vote in a free and fair election in the future.”

Fellow protester Cyndi Totter attended to “save this country” for her granddaughter and “her rights.”

Likewise, Bolingbrook’s Marjorie Mroczek came to the event for her seven grandchildren, noting that, “I want a world to be good for them. I want them to live in a democracy and be able to do this.”

The event also included veterans like Alvin Simmons of Bolingbrook who draped a United States flag around his shoulders.

Simmons, who served in the U.S. Marines for four years in the 1970s, said, “All those who say we are not American should serve their country.”

Joliet’s A.J. Depaolo came out to protest for the very first time with his mom, Nancy, out of concern over the attacks on “everyone’s basic human rights”

“You are a human, you should not be treated this way, no matter where you come from,” Depaolo said, referring to the actions of ICE agents in the area.