Annual May Day rallies in cities across the country swelled with thousands of anti-Trump demonstrators on Thursday, as outcry continued to grow over the president’s agenda and expansion of executive power.
Protesters denounced the administration’s effort to roll back workers’ rights, a particular sore spot on a day dedicated to celebrating organized labor, as well as plans to cut education funding and carry out mass deportations.
A separate effort, which organizers billed as a National Day of Law brought legal professionals to the Supreme Court in Washington and federal courthouses across the country on Thursday to push for judicial independence and oppose efforts to intimidate law firms.
Police closed streets for the crowds in major cities including New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Washington. But protesters also rallied in small communities that voted overwhelmingly for President Trump, including places like Norman, Okla., Sauk City, Wis., and Hendersonville, N.C. Groups held signs in front of municipal buildings and public schools, and some demonstrators wore red to indicate support for public education.
The protests, more than 1,000 were expected across the country, were spearheaded to coincide with traditional May Day labor rallies by 50501, a coalition of grass-roots activist groups, as well as by labor, nonprofit and civil rights organizations.
