A demonstration condemning what they see as an assault on democracy and American values by President Donald Trump and billionaire advisor Elon Musk.
By Michael Casey
BOSTON — Protesters against President Donald Trump and his policies braved frigid temperatures on Monday to rally in demonstrations marking the Presidents Day holiday.
Dubbed “No Kings on Presidents Day” by the 50501 Movement, the latest protests took place less than two weeks after a similar nationwide event on February 5, which saw participants in dozens of cities. Both protests denounced Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk, the head of Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency, an outside-government organization created to slash federal spending.
Nearly 1,000 people marched through the snow from the Statehouse in Boston to City Hall, chanting “Elon Musk has got to go” and “No kings on Presidents Day!” The temperature was below freezing, with wind chills in the teens.
Some Boston protesters, dressed in Revolutionary War-era clothing, carried signs reading “This is a Coup” and “Cowards Bow to Trump, Patriots Stand Up.” One sign depicted Uncle Sam with the phrase “I Want You to Resist.”
“I thought it was important to be here on Presidents Day to demonstrate for what America stands for,” said Emily Manning, 55, a Boston engineer who attended the rally with her two teenage sons. “American values are not the values of the plutocracy or the few rich people.”
Organizers of Monday’s protests, which took place in state capitals and major cities including Washington, D.C., Orlando, Florida, and Seattle, said they were protesting the “anti-democratic and illegal actions of the Trump administration and its plutocratic allies.”
One sign at the rally in the nation’s capital, which attracted hundreds, read, “Deport Musk, Dethrone Trump.”
Many demonstrations were planned for cities where temperatures were well below freezing as a polar vortex swept across the country.
The rallies followed a series of executive orders from Trump and came just days after layoffs across federal agencies as part of efforts to reduce the government workforce.
Associated Press writer Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, contributed to this report.