Delegates from across the original 13 colonies signed the Declaration of Independence 250 years ago on July 4, 1776 detailing the abuses of the King of England that led to their fight for sovereignty. Their condemnation feels all too familiar today.
The Declaration of Independence proclaimed the country's original 13 colonies separate from the rule of the British monarchy. It also established people’s "unalienable rights" and emphasized the government's role of protecting the rights of the governed, helping to form the principles and framework for the new country.
The document details King George III’s "repeated injuries and usurpations," that led to the colonies' fight for sovereignty. That list reveals parallels between the cruelty of King George III and the current abuses of President Donald Trump. Throughout his second term, President Trump has repeatedly committed civil rights offenses that fly in the face of the promises outlined by the Founding Fathers. From the start, our country has championed a rule of law that supports the rights of the governed and not the whims of a despot — 250 years later, we're still proclaiming No Kings.
Below, learn more about some of the monarchical offenses outlined in the Declaration of Independence, how Trump's administration has taken similar offending actions, and how the ACLU is fighting back to protect our rights.
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"He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people."
The Trump administration has repeatedly tried to sideline Congress and undermine its ability to act as a check on executive power. For example, the Trump administration has repeatedly ignored federal spending laws and eliminated and hollowed out statutorily mandated agencies like the Department of Education, USAID, and civil rights enforcement offices. The Trump administration also undermines Congress by ignoring or attacking oversight, such as by stonewalling congressional oversight visits to immigration detention centers.
"He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands."
President Trump has targeted immigrants' rights since his first day back in office, principally by attempting to eliminate birthright citizenship as a constitutional guarantee. He has also weaponized federal forces to unlawfully confront and seize individuals, often without any legitimate cause. The ACLU has been a frontline force against these unlawful actions. We took the fight to protect birthright citizenship all the way to the Supreme Court — and won — while continuing to highlight the federal government's offenses against immigrants in and out of the courtroom.
"He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislature."
In response to Trump’s anti-immigrant aggression, thousands of people have exercised their constitutionally-protected right to protest, including on university campuses and around our nation’s capital. Trump has deployed the National Guard and other federal agents into our country's communities including Washington D.C. and Minnesota, in an attempt to silence their dissent through intimidation. But the ACLU has been working to make sure that individuals know their rights when they encounter or are confronted by law enforcement and federal agents. No one should be targeted, arrested, or detained for exercising their First Amendment rights.
"He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power."
Trump has used the military to illegally declare war. On February 28, 2026, the president started bombing Iran and announced that we were going to war, despite this power belonging solely to Congress to initiate. As bipartisan opposition grows in Congress, the ACLU continues to urge members to use their power of the purse and refuse further funding of this unconstitutional war.