NEW YORK — Opponents of the Trump administration took to the streets of communities large and small across the U.S. on Saturday, decrying what they see as threats to the nation’s democratic ideals.
The disparate events included rallies in midtown Manhattan and in front of the White House and a demonstration at a Massachusetts commemoration marking the start of the American Revolutionary War 250 years ago.
Thomas Bassford drove from his home some three hours away in Maine to witness the reenactment of the Battles of Lexington and Concord and “the shot heard ’round the world” on April 19, 1775, that heralded the start of the nation’s war for independence from Britain.
The 80-year-old retired mason said he believed Americans today are under attack from their own government and need to stand up against it.
“This is a very perilous time in America for liberty,” Bassford said, joined by his partner, daughter and two grandsons. “I wanted the boys to learn about the origins of this country and that sometimes we have to fight for freedom.”
Elsewhere, protests were planned outside Tesla car dealerships against billionaire Trump advisor Elon Musk and his role in downsizing the federal government, while others organized community-service events such as food drives, teach-ins and volunteered at local shelters.
The protests come two weeks after similar nationwide protests against the Trump administration drew thousands to the streets across the country.
Organizers say they’re protesting against what they view as President Trump’s civil rights and constitutional violations, including efforts to deport scores of immigrants and slash the federal government by firing thousands of government workers and effectively shutting entire agencies.
Some of the events drew on the spirit of the American Revolutionary War, calling for “no kings” and resistance to tyranny.
Boston resident George Bryant was among those who turned out in Concord. He said was concerned Trump was creating a “police state” in America as he held up a sign saying, “Trump fascist regime must go now!”
“He’s defying the courts. He’s kidnapping students. He’s eviscerating the checks and balances,” Bryant said. “This is fascism.”
In Washington, Bob Fasick said he came out to the rally by the White House out of concern about threats to constitutionally protected due process rights, as well as Social Security and other federal safety-net programs.
The Trump administration, among other things, has moved to close Social Security Administration field offices, cut funding for government health programs and scale back protections for transgender people.
“I cannot sit still knowing that if I don’t do anything and everybody doesn’t do something to change this, that the world that we collectively are leaving for the little children, for our neighbors, is simply not one that I would want to live” in, said Fasick, a 76-year-old retired federal employee from Springfield, Va.
And in Manhattan, protesters on the steps of the New York Public Library rallied against continued deportations of immigrants.
“No fear, no hate, no ICE in our state,” they chanted to the rat-ta-tat of drums, referring to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Melinda Charles of Connecticut said she was most worried about what she viewed as Trump’s “executive overreach,” citing his clashes with the federal courts as he tries to force changes at Harvard and other elite colleges that he views as too liberal.
“We’re supposed to have three equal branches of government, and to have the executive branch become so strong, I mean, it’s just unbelievable,” she said.
Marcelo writes for the Associated Press. AP writers Claire Rush in Oregon, Joseph Frederick in New York, Rodrique Ngowi in Massachusetts and Nathan Ellgren in Washington contributed to this report.