(CNN) -- Saturday saw protests across the United States, held to express solidarity with the anti-government demonstrations currently roiling Egypt. Whether on the East Coast or the West Coast, crowds carried banners, flags and signs as they chanted, hoping their support could be felt thousands of miles away in Cairo, Alexandria and other Egyptian cities.
In San Francisco, demonstrators gathered at a corner on Market Street and quickly packed the sidewalk, waving Egyptian and American flags. Participants seemed to represent a rainbow of backgrounds and ages. There were elderly couples, teenagers and children with Egypt's colors painted on their faces. Many Egyptian-Americans were there, enlivening the chants with Arabic phrases. But plenty of people of Latin, Caucasian and Asian descent also turned out to march, support Egyptian demonstrators and demand the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak.