April 18 (UPI) — More than 400 demonstrations are planned nationwide on Saturday against President Donald Trump and his policies.
The same grass-roots group 505051 that organized “Hands Off” demonstration that drew millions of people on April 5 is planning another one event called “A Day of Action.” The website lists demonstrations’ locations, including some outside the United States.
“Coming off a historic day where an estimated 5.2 million of you all showed up to join us to declare that We the People reject the Trump/Musk administration’s war on our freedoms and future the 50501 movement has declared Saturday, April 19th a nationwide day of action!” the group posted on Instagram.
The group’s name stands for 50 States, 50 Protests, 1 movement, which is a “decentralized, people-powered network of resistance and resilience.”
“The 50501 movement has called for a National Day of Action, also known as a National Day of Community Action, not a National Day of Protest,” Hunter Dunn, national press coordinator for the organization, told Newsweek. “There are plenty of demonstrations happening around the country as part of the day of action, but the primary focus of the day of action is speaking to the needs of your community.”
The 250th anniversary of the American Revolution in 1775 is Saturday.
The protests are a response “to authoritarian threats, political overreach, and the erosion of democracy,” according to organizers.
The movement is against a “billionaire takeover,” including by Trump and Elon Musk who are “consolidating power, buying politicians, rigging the system, and silencing the people to serve their own interests,” according to its website.
Also, they are fighting “an economy rigged against the People.” They say “while billionaires amass historic wealth, working Americans are crushed by skyrocketing costs, union-busting, and poverty wages.”
The group is responding to “Trump’s Defiance of the Law” that includes ignoring court rulings against purged federal agencies and targeted political foes by declaring he is above the law.
And they are upset about “the Erosion of freedom.” They include “state-sanctioned kidnappings of students and immigrants deported without due process to attacks on voting rights, reproductive healthcare, workers’ rights, and free elections, oligarchs are dismantling the foundations of our country.”
The group said it represents a cross-section of people racially, ethnically, generationally, economically and political parties.
They say they are led by people who believe in nonviolence, mutual care, and democratic values.”
Demonstrations include marches and rallies. There will be diaper drives, skill sharing, free community meals and teach-ins.
“April 19 is just one day of action,” according to the website. “The 50501 Movement will continue to organize, resist, and build together as long as it takes.”
We the People Dissent, a 50501 affiliate, lists more than 525 broader events Saturday.