Attorneys, educators, and lawmakers paraded among thousands of protesters nationwide on Thursday to contest President Donald Trump’s policies concerning immigration, the targeting of legal professionals and judges, as well as the influence of affluent decision-makers.
Jennifer Vasquez Sura, whose spouse Kilmar Abrego Garcia is a U.S. resident mistakenly sent by the administration to a prison in El Salvador, addressed a rally in Washington that was part of the protests coordinated by lawyers’ organizations and a coalition of over 200 labor unions and advocates for immigrant rights.
“He was unlawfully detained, kidnapped, and vanished by the Trump administration, though they acknowledged it was a mistake,” Ms. Vasquez Sura stated, adding that her husband has endured “50 days of distress.”
“For everyone observing, keep striving,” she urged. The audience reacted with shouts of: “Bring Kilmar home.”
Organizers have accused the Trump administration of favoring the interests of billionaires and have called for an investment in working families by fully financing healthcare, housing, and public education.
“There’s a stark contrast between the priorities of the Trump administration and what ordinary people want and require,” remarked Lisa Gilbert, co-president of Public Citizen, a consumer rights advocacy organization and a co-organizer of the Washington rally.
Organizers anticipated hundreds of thousands of demonstrators across the nation, aspiring for the most significant May Day protests in U.S. history. Previous demonstrations have attracted thousands of participants since Trump returned to the presidency.
Federal employees have been dismissed as Mr. Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, a chief adviser leading a new Department of Government Efficiency, have worked to cut down government departments and eliminate positions.
U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar addressed a gathering in Washington, asserting that the administration’s actions were “removing oversight so corporations can exploit workers without repercussions.”
Days after Mr. Trump celebrated his first 100 days in office with a campaign-style gathering in Michigan, the rallies emerged as Democrats sought a cohesive response and a unifying leader.
U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont spoke to thousands at a rally in Philadelphia.
In New York, U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez cautioned protesters that Mr. Trump and the Republican majority in Congress “are targeting Medicaid next.”
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, who has been traveling across the nation hosting rallies with Sanders, mentioned she had just discovered that Republicans “have paused next week’s Medicaid cuts because they’re becoming too afraid… But our struggle is not finished because they have merely paused” these cuts to Medicaid, the federal health insurance program for low-income Americans.
She reported there were 6,000 demonstrators in New York City, with tens of thousands more rallying in Philadelphia, Idaho, Los Angeles, Denver, and Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona.
Additionally, in New York, numerous attorneys participated in a separate “National Law Day of Action” gathering, chanting “Respect our judges, give support. Stand behind them, and the court.”
Some notable law firms have committed millions in pro bono legal services and made other concessions to Mr. Trump in efforts to persuade him to retract punitive measures against them. Others have initiated lawsuits contesting his directives and have received backing from law professors, advocacy organizations, state attorneys general, former high-ranking legal officials at major corporations, and additional supporters.
Federal judges have claimed the Trump administration has neglected to comply with court orders related to foreign aid, federal spending, and the termination of government employees. The administration contests that it has disobeyed the judiciary.
Among the speakers in Manhattan was Stuart Gerson, who served as an assistant attorney general under President George H.W. Bush, a Republican, and also acted as attorney general under President Bill Clinton, a Democrat.
“This is about the nation, not about a political party,” Gerson told the assembly, recalling what Bush conveyed to him when Clinton invited him to join his cabinet. “You don’t pledge allegiance to an individual, you pledge allegiance to the Constitution.”
In Los Angeles, protesters directed their frustration towards Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and Mr. Trump’s strict stance on immigration, raising banners that declared, “L.A. labor stands with immigrants” and “Resist Fascism.”
“The constitution is being violated,” stated Mark Diamond, 62, from the L.A. neighborhood of San Pedro. “If it takes four years, we’ll return here 100 times.” — Reuters
