This past Saturday, April 5, millions of people across the country, and the world, came together to protest the recent actions done by President Donald Trump and his Advisor, Elon Musk. The protests were dubbed “Hands Off!” and over 1,400 demonstrations were held across the United States, according to CNN.
Flyers for the protest called a number of people to action, stating, Whether you are mobilized by the attacks on our democracy, the slashing of jobs, the invasion of privacy, or the assault on our services – this moment is for you.” The flyer continued, “We are setting out to build a massive, visible, national rejection of this crisis.”
Close to 600,000 people signed up to attend the events online all across the world, most prominently in cities like London and Paris. The organizers of the protests stated they had three demands they were aiming to meet through the protests: “an end to the billionaire takeover and rampant corruption of the Trump administration; an end to slashing federal funds for Medicaid, Social Security, and other programs working people rely on; and an end to the attacks on immigrants, trans people, and other communities.”
Protests happened in most major cities across the U.S., including many in State Capitols and Washington D.C. These cities include the two biggest in Kentucky, Lexington and Louisville, where hundreds of civilians, including State Representatives and U.S. Rep. Morgan McGarvey (D-KY) joined in as well. In a statement to his X account, McGarvey stated that Louisville had “brought the ENERGY today.” He followed by stating, “We are marching to send a clear message to Elon Musk and Donald Trump: hands off Medicaid, hands off Social Security, hands off public education.”
In Lexington, hundreds gathered around the Fayette County Courthouse to protest the president’s actions since taking office this January. Harry Neack, a worker from Bluegrass Activist Alliance and one of the event’s organizers, told WEKU-NPR that “The sciences are under attack.” He followed, “The CDC, the NIH, those things are being shut down or impeded. Education is being impeded or shut down entirely. Those are very important issues to us all.” He finished by saying, “I saw somebody with a sign that said, ‘Too many issues, not enough cardboard.’”
Sarah Fightmaster Bayerle, the president of Kentucky’s American Federation of Teachers union, reiterated this concern. “There are so many things at risk here, special education services, arts and music classes. You know, the loss of teacher jobs,” Bayerle said. She continued, “We’re already over capacity in our schools, so to lose positions is going to have a devastating effect on those kids, the kids that I see every day, and the kids who need us the most.”
The protests were largely peaceful, and could possibly continue as the Trump administration goes through its term. Neack stated that other protests were planned all across the Commonwealth, though many had to be canceled due to the state’s recent weather conditions. These events are still planned this weekend, however, and could also continue across the country, though this is unknown at this time.
Photo courtesy of Andres Kudacki.
