ST. PAUL, Minn. – When anti-Trump protesters took to the streets across the country in late March for rallies branded as "No Kings," CNN reported that anti-Trump protests had "popped up" nationwide, including at the Minnesota State Capitol.
The machine behind the protest included deploying about 30 semi-trucks to deliver concert-level equipment, a massive mobile stage, nearly a mile of heavy-duty feeder cable used to distribute electricity throughout the rally site, scores of porta-toilets and folding chairs, eight jumbo screens, high-speed internet and bike-rack barriers to keep the crowds away from the stage, filled with bold-faced celebrities including rock star Bruce Springsteen, actress Jane Fonda and singer Joan Baez.
The operation amounted to a massive buildout that resembled the setup for an outdoor music festival or Def Leppard concert, according to the event's vendors, most of whom requested anonymity.
The logistical details behind the event illustrate how modern protests increasingly resemble professionally produced public events rather than spontaneous grassroots demonstrations. The investigation reveals a rare behind-the-scenes view of the infrastructure, funding and logistics that power the modern day protest industry, details organizers rarely disclose.
500 GROUPS WITH $3B IN REVENUES ARE BEHIND THE #NOKINGS PROTESTS AND COMMUNIST CALL FOR 'REVOLUTION'
Professional vendors supplied the bike-rack barriers, tents and jumbo video screens at the No Kings protest on March 28, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn., outside the State Capitol. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
As Fox News Digital previously reported, about 500 organizations with an estimated $3 billion in annual revenues sponsored, endorsed and participated in the nationwide protest. The network includes stalwart Democratic nonprofits including Indivisible, MoveOn and the ACLU, which have received millions of dollars over the years from billionaire George Soros and his Open Society philanthropies.
Another network tied to the protests includes pro-communist groups, like the People's Forum, CodePink, the ANSWER Coalition and the Party for Socialism and Liberation, backed by American-born tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham, who lives in Shanghai, promoting messaging aligned with the Chinese Communist Party, President Xi Jinping and the People’s Republic of China. Notably, anti-American rhetoric from China labeling the United States as "fascist," "rogue," and "autocratic" has been parroted by these groups and surfaced as a recurring theme in the St. Paul protest, where communist and socialist organizations flew the flags of Iran, Venezuela and Cuba. Singham didn't respond to a request for comment.
POWER COUPLE OF CHAOS: HOW A TYCOON AND ACTIVIST BUILT A 'REVOLUTIONARY BASE' AT THE HOUSE OF SINGHAM
A variety of international flags are hoisted by demonstrators at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul on March 28, 2026. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
It's understood that Indivisible footed most of the bill for the St. Paul protest, sources said.
Nancy Snow, author of the book, "Propaganda and Persuasion," told Fox News Digital that it's important to follow the money on all aspects of political communication, including protests.
"We are in an age of cognitive warfare, in which there is a competition to shape how people think, and it's always important to follow the money because it tells you who is setting the agenda and amplifying the message," she said. "Following the money doesn’t automatically invalidate the grievances of citizens who show up for a protest. Both things can be true at once."
About 24 hours before demonstrators arrived with signs calling the U.S. a "fascist" nation, a different scene unfolded on the Capitol grounds, with semi-trucks loaded with equipment rolling into the State Capitol.
'NO KINGS' CALLS ITSELF LEADERLESS, BUT ITS OWN INTERNAL DOCUMENTS TELL A VERY DIFFERENT STORY
Matt Svobodny, production manager at Slamhammer Sound & Roadcase Co. stands in front of the stage that he and his crew set up for the "No Kings" protest in St. Paul, Minn. (Fox News Digital)
"You need a platform for people to stand on and a way for people to be seen and heard in order to reach everybody," Matt Svobodny, a production manager with Slamhammer Sound & Roadcase Co., a live-event production company based in nearby St. Louis Park, Minn., told Fox News Digital.
"And, in order to do that, you need professionals that know what they're doing and are going to do it also safe for all the people…," he said. "So you can't just have people with good intentions and no idea what they're doing."
A longtime professional, Svobodny provided a rare warehouse tour of the elements required to make the protest happen.
Image 1 of 2 next Slamhammer Sound & Roadcase Co. provided the ballistic bullet-resistant barriers that Bruce Springsteen sang behind at the "No Kings" protest in St. Paul, Minn. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Image)
Image 2 of 2 prev Slamhammer Sound & Roadcase Co. delivered and assembled the stage for the "No Kings" protest in St. Paul, Minn. Warning Lites of Minnesota provided the bike-rack barriers. Other vendors provided the tents and jumbo screens. (Adam Bettcher/Getty Images)
Svobodny said crews began physical setup around 8 a.m. Friday and continued working until after midnight, returning in early morning. Along with the mobile concert stage and cable, the system they assembled included about 100 speakers and extensive lighting equipment. Three vendors supplied eight large video screens across the Capitol grounds so people far from the stage at the far end near Martin Luther King Boulevard could see the speakers.
Additional delay speakers were positioned farther back from the stage so that speeches would remain synchronized across the large audience area, he said. For security reasons, the stage was partially fitted with ballistic bullet-resistant glass to protect the speakers.
"It has all the elements and infrastructure of a music festival," Svobodny said.
Image 1 of 4 next Long after the crowds went home from the Saturday afternoon protest, professional vendors broke down their equipment at the No Kings protest in St. Paul, Minn., working until 2 a.m. (Asra Q. Nomani/Fox News Digital)
Image 2 of 4 prev next Slamhammer Sound & Roadcase Co. was the main vendor of the "No Kings" protest in St. Paul, Minn., and coordinated the subvendors. (Asra Q. Nomani/Fox News Digital)
Image 3 of 4 prev next Common World Productions Inc. provided infrastructure support for the "No Kings" protest on March 28, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (Asra Q. Nomani)
Image 4 of 4 prev Ultimate Events provided the tents, chairs and tables at the No Kings protest on March 28, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (Asra Q. Nomani/Fox News Digital)
Permit records, obtained by Fox News Digital, identify the organizing entity for the event as the "No Kings Coalition and Indivisible Twin Cities." Indivisible is the brand name for several powerful Democratic groups: Indivisible Action, a political action committee; Indivisible Project, a 501(c)(4) with $10.4 million in revenues; and Indivisible Action, a 501(c)(3) with $5.2 million in revenues.
The permit application listed a local leader, Kris Ragozzino, as the applicant and described the rally as a program including "speakers, artists and musicians." The production itself relied on a network of specialized vendors, each responsible for a different component of the rally’s infrastructure.
The estimated total for the logistical expenses was $250,000, sources said.
PR expert Roger Fisk poses for a profile shoot during FICCI Frames 2014 on March 20, 2014, in Mumbai, India. He has been described as a political campaign, marketing and media strategist credited with playing a key behind-the-scenes role in Barack Obama's presidential wins in 2008 and 2012. He also worked in the Biden administration. He is now a self-described "Senior Advisor" with Indivisible, organizing its "No Kings" protests. ( (PhAbhijit Bhatlekar/Mint via Getty Images)
In the post, Fisk recalled the "complexity" of organizing the event, noting, "Add to that satellite trucks, cable runs, ballistic glass, road closures, most of the bike rack [sic] in North America, risk monitoring and threat analysis, bridge construction, Springsteen, a kaleidoscope of law enforcement, and staffs of elected officials, security details, and other celebrities that require specific care and respect. The final week was 4 am to 9-10-11 pm…"
E5 Energy supplied the generators and electricity to power the "No Kings" protest in St. Paul, Minn. Ultimate Events provided the canvas tents. (Asra Q. Nomani/Fox News Digital)
Fisk added that "we have learned so much together in developing the art and science of these massive pro-democracy public engagements." Ragozzino, Fisk and Indivisible co-founders Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg didn't respond to requests for comment.
Fisk bluntly acknowledged the protests were staged for the cameras for maximum media coverage, which public relations officials call "earned media," a buzzword for free press coverage. "Earned media is my main metric," Fisk wrote, "and our content reached between a quarter and a half billion impressions in the 24 hours after the events, with our flagship event leading the way."
In his LinkedIn profile, Fisk writes that he worked this past year as a consultant to Indivisible and its three earlier "No Kings" protests, saying he "developed thematic strategies and program frameworks for Indivisible’s three pro-democracy mobilizations, engaging 15 million people across every state and 22 countries coordinating messaging across messaging networks." He didn't disclose how much he had been paid.
COMMUNISTS, DEMOCRATS USE #NOKINGS RALLY TO CALL FOR MAY DAY STRIKE: ‘SHUT IT DOWN’
Image 1 of 2 next On Site Companies supplied the porta-toilets at the "No Kings" protest in St. Paul, Minn. (Asra Q. Nomani/Fox News Digital)
Image 2 of 2 prev A demonstrator leaned a Party for Socialism and Liberation sign against a porta-toilet at the end of the "No Kings" protest in Saint Paul, Minn. (Asra Q. Nomani/Fox News Digital)
Snow, the former director of the New Hampshire chapter of Common Cause, a progressive group, said that "sunshine is the best disinfectant" and encourages organizations to be more transparent about the obvious logistical heavy-lifting it takes to throw a protest.
In his company's warehouse, as crews cleaned the stage, Svobodny considered the event a success, in part because the vendors went unnoticed by the media. "Hopefully, most people didn’t even think about us," he said.
"I mean, in some ways, kind of, the goal of us or myself is to, like, not even be noticed."
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Asra Nomani is senior editor of investigations at Fox News Digital. She is a former reporter at the Wall Street Journal, where she covered stories related to money, politics and society. She is the author of "Woke Army: The Left-Green Alliance That Is Undermining America’s Freedom." She can be reached at asra.nomani@fox.com and on X at @asranomani.
