Faithful Witness in a No Kings Moment
By UCC Coalition | March 13, 2026
Click here to pledge to participate as a public witness in a No Kings event on March 28, 2026.
Over the past year, I have been asking a question that many pastors and people of faith are asking right now:
How should the people of faith be responding in this moment?
At the Open and Affirming Coalition’s National Gathering last year, I issued a challenge to our churches. I said it is time for us to move beyond safe statements and symbolic gestures. It is time for us to A.C.T OUT.
A.C.T OUT stands for Advocacy, Community, Transformation. It is our invitation to move from affirmation to action in a time when so many of our neighbors are experiencing fear, exclusion, and injustice.
This invitation is not about being loud for the sake of being loud. It is about being faithful. And faithfulness sometimes asks us to show up.
I Am Encouraging Coalition Supporters to Participate in No Kings Events.
On Saturday March 28, 2026, communities across the world are organizing public gatherings through the No Kings movement. These events are meant to affirm democratic values and resist the growing normalization of authoritarian power.
As a pastor, I want to be clear: participating in peaceful public witness is not a partisan act.
IT IS A MORAL ACT!
Scripture reminds us again and again that people of faith are called to stand with those who are pushed to the margins of society, silenced, or harmed by unjust systems of oppression. The prophets confronted kings. Jesus spoke truth to power. The early church refused to bow to empire.
Faith has never been about passive comfort. It has always been about courageous love.
That is why I am encouraging supporters of the Open and Affirming Coalition to consider participating in a No Kings action wherever you are located.
The Rainbow Coalition and Our Shared Struggles
The recent passing of activist Rev. Jesse Jackson reminded us of his vision of a Rainbow Coalition. Rev. Jackson helped articulate something that movements for justice have always known: that communities who experience injustice in different ways often share a common struggle. The Rainbow Coalition brought together Black communities, labor movements, farmers, immigrants, LGBTQ+ people, and poor communities under a shared vision of dignity and justice.
That vision matters now more than ever.
Today we are witnessing policies and rhetoric that target people living at the margins of society (immigrants, transgender people, LGBTQ+ communities, people of color, unhoused people, poor people, and others perpetually struggling economically.)
These are not isolated issues. They are connected and our response must be connected as well.
An Intersectional Moment of Concern
Recent developments across the country highlight how serious this moment has become.
Efforts to remove LGBTQ+ visibility from public spaces, including the removal of the Pride flag from the Stonewall National Monument, signal attempts to erase the presence and history of queer people.
Researchers and advocates are also warning that federal datasets containing LGBTQ+ information are disappearing, making it harder to track discrimination and health disparities.
At the same time, cuts to public health funding and social support programs disproportionately affect the very communities already living with the greatest vulnerability.
When we step back and look at the whole picture, it becomes clear that what we are witnessing is not a series of unrelated policy debates. It is a broader struggle over whose lives are valued and whose voices are heard and people of faith are called to sound the alarm!
A Public Witness of Faith
Participating in a peaceful demonstration is not about anger or spectacle. It is about bearing witness. It is about standing in public and saying:
God’s love belongs to everyone.
Human dignity is not negotiable.
Justice matters.
Jesus told his followers, “You are the salt of the earth.”
Salt preserves. Salt protects. Salt transforms. Salt melts.
In a time when cruelty and indifference can harden hearts like ice, the faithful are called to be the salt that melts it.
How You Can Participate
If you feel called to participate in a No Kings action, you can begin by visiting:
There you can find events happening across the country, including both in-person and virtual opportunities.
If you decide to participate, we invite you to also register with the Open and Affirming Coalition No Kings Circle so we can stay connected, support one another, and gather stories after the events.
This is the first call of a broader movement into faithful advocacy as we continue building the A.C.T OUT initiative.
Signs You Can Print and Bring
To help make our witness visible, we have created a series of printable 11×17 protest signs that you can download, print, attach to foamboard/poster board/ cardboard and bring with you to your event.
Low ink Versions Here:
Salt of the Earth Melts Ice (low ink)
Affirming Trans Lives (low ink)
Stop Kidnapping God’s People (low ink)
Liberty and Justice for All (low ink)
Full Ink Versions Here:
Salt of the Earth Melts Ice (full ink)
Stop Kidnapping God’s People (full ink)
Liberty and Justice For All (full ink)
Affirming Trans Lives (full ink)
A Few Practical Suggestions
If you attend a No Kings event, consider these simple practices:
Attend with a friend or small group if possible.
Wear clothing that reflects your values or faith community if you feel comfortable.
Bring water, sunscreen, and comfortable shoes.
Follow the guidance of event organizers.
Take photos and share them so others can see the presence of affirming faith communities (AFTER THE EVENT. NOT DURING)
If you do take photos, we would especially love to see pictures that include the Coalition signs and logo. Share them: Office@openandaffirming.org
Stories matter. Witness matters. And seeing people of faith standing publicly for justice matters.
A Final Word
In every generation, people of faith must decide whether they will remain quiet in the face of injustice or whether they will step forward with courage.
This is one of those moments.
Participating in a No Kings event will not solve everything. But showing up can remind the world—and ourselves—that the struggle for justice is not finished.
And that people of faith are still part of it.
Grace and peace,
Rev. Derek Terry
Acting Executive Director, Open and Affirming Coalition
Click here to pledge to participate as a public witness in a No Kings event on March 28, 2026.
