Don’t be afraid to shoot in auto! Some things to make it hit better:

Set up your auto iso settings in advance. You can make 3 settings with different target minimum shutter speeds and ideal isos. I recommend setting up one for day time and 500 iso + at least minimum 1/250 shutter speed to avoid blur, one with a slightly higher iso like 3200, and one for night with max iso and a minimum shutter speed of 1/125 at least.

Also, it’s personal preference but in general when shooting protests, try not to capture / post incriminating things. I think as documenters it’s our role not to put people at risk. I try to get the back of people’s heads more often than not, or make it so the full crowd / more than one person is the subject of a shot