Thousands of protesters gathered on Wednesday in numerous cities across the United States to protest against the early actions of President Donald Trump's government, denouncing his immigration measures, his reversal of transgender rights, and his proposal to forcibly transfer Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.
In Philadelphia and at the state capitols of California, Minnesota, Michigan, Texas, Wisconsin, Indiana, and beyond, protesters waved signs denouncing Trump; billionaire Elon Musk, leader of Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency; and Project 2025, a far-right manual for the US government and society.
"I am horrified by the changes in democracy in the last... well, specifically two weeks, but they started a long time ago," said Margaret Wilmeth at a protest in front of the state Capitol in Columbus, Ohio. "So I'm just trying to put a presence in the resistance."
The protests were the result of a movement that has organized online under the hashtags #buildtheresistance and #50501, a number representing 50 protests, 50 states, one day. Websites and social media accounts issued calls to action, with messages like "reject fascism" and "defend our democracy."
Outside the state Capitol in Lansing, Michigan, hundreds of people gathered in below-freezing temperatures. Catie Miglietti said Musk's access to Treasury Department data was particularly concerning. She painted a sign showing Musk driving Trump from his raised arm, evoking Musk's straight-arm gesture during a speech in January that some have interpreted as a Nazi salute. "If we don't stop him and make Congress do something, it's an attack on democracy," Miglietti denounced.
Criticisms of Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) accumulated at the demonstrations in several cities. "The DOGE is not legitimate," read a sign on the steps of the state Capitol in Jefferson City, Missouri, where dozens of protesters gathered. "Why does Elon have your Social Security information?".
Lawmakers have expressed concerns that DOGE's involvement in the US government's payment system could lead to security risks or missed payments for programs like Social Security and Medicare. A Treasury Department official says a tech executive working with DOGE will have "read-only access."
Trump has signed a series of executive orders in the early weeks of his new term, covering issues ranging from trade and immigration to climate change. As Democrats begin to raise their voices in opposition to Trump's agenda, protests have multiplied.
Protesters marched through downtown Austin, Texas. They gathered at the Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta for a march to the Georgia state Capitol, and congregated in front of the Democrat-controlled Legislature in Sacramento, California. In Denver, protests coincided with nearby operations of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and an unspecified number of people detained.
"We need to show strength," said Laura Wilde, a former public school occupational therapist in Austin. "I think we are in a state of shock."
In Alabama, several hundred people gathered outside the state Capitol to protest actions targeting LGBTQ+ individuals.
On Tuesday, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey promised to sign legislation declaring that there are only two sexes, male and female, echoing Trump's recent executive order for the federal government to define sex only as male or female.
"The president thinks he has a lot of power," Reverend Julie Conrady, a Unitarian Universalist minister, told the crowd. "He doesn't have the power to determine your gender. He doesn't have the power to define your identity."