MINNEAPOLIS — “Today is our day! Everyday is our day,” one leader shouted as hundreds of protesters marched down the streets of Minneapolis to resist the presidency of Donald Trump, who has only spent 102 days in office.
“Build schools, not walls,” was one of the many chants protesters shouted in front of the Federal Court building.
A small band of drummers and dancers from Henry High School in Minneapolis gave a pre-rally performance in front of the U.S. Bank Plaza just one block away from the federal building.
One organizer told the crowd that big corporations like U.S. Bank did not pay their fair share in taxes and as a result, schools were suffering.
The organizers also took the time to recognize State Rep. Erin Murphy (D-St. Paul) who announced her candidacy for Governor in December of last year. Murphy did not speak, but was seen chatting with those in the crowd and had joined marchers in their walk down 3rd Avenue.
Another speaker told the crowd that Minnesota had a $1.6 billion dollar surplus, but schools could no longer afford things like recess and books.
Other chants like, “Up with workers, down with bosses,” and “Down with Capitalism, Down with Fascism,” were other chants heard from the crowd.
A local AFSCME leader said Trump attacked women, minorities, immigrants, LGBTQ+, workers, etc. in her speech.
Many in the crowd wore apparel that showed their union affiliation like SEIU and AFSCME and chatted about their jobs within the government and as teachers.
Six plain, white, vans followed the protesters around shuttling people to and from the site of the protest. One man in a bright, neon yellow vest told Alpha News that the vans were rented by various local organizations. The one he was standing in front of was rented by a local AFSCME chapter in Minneapolis.
Local organizers were handing out flyers to future events, protests, and informational flyers that spoke of how socialism is the only answer to beating Trump. The flyer states, “Barely 25% of the voting population cast a ballot for Trump.” This figure is inaccurate. According to an analysis of ballots cast versus the number of eligible voters according to CNN and Heavy statistics, Hillary Clinton received a total of 28.4 percent of all eligible voters and Trump received 27.2 percent of eligible voters.
Organizers of many different organizations handed out flyers encouraging others to join the movement, to fight and resist.
Preya Samsundar
Preya Samsundar was born and raised in Minneapolis, MN. She graduated from the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities this Spring with a B.A. in Political Science and Sociology, with a minor in Strategic Communications. Preya has previously worked on several State Campaign Races.
