Tens of thousands of protesters on Saturday flooded the streets of major US cities to oppose the divisive policies of US President Donald Trump, in the largest demonstrations since his return to the White House.
The “Hands Off!” demonstrations were organized for more than 1,200 locations in all 50 states by more than 150 groups, including civil rights organizations, labor unions, LBGTQ+ advocates, veterans and elections advocates. The rallies appeared peaceful, with no immediate reports of arrests.
Protesters in cities dotting the nation from New York’s Midtown Manhattan to Anchorage, Alaska, including at multiple state capitols, assailed Trump and billionaire Elon Musk’s actions on government downsizing, the economy, immigration and human rights.
Photo: AFP
On the West Coast, in the shadow of Seattle’s iconic Space Needle, protesters held signs with slogans such as “Fight the oligarchy.” Protesters chanted as they took to the streets in Portland, Oregon, and Los Angeles, where they marched from Pershing Square to City Hall.
Demonstrators voiced anger over the administration’s moves to fire thousands of federal workers, close Social Security Administration field offices, effectively shutter entire agencies, deport immigrants, scale back protections for transgender people and cut funding for health programs.
In Washington, thousands of demonstrators — many traveling from across the US — gathered on the National Mall where dozens of speakers rallied opposition to Trump.
Photo: Reuters
“We have about 100 people who have come down by bus and van from New Hampshire to protest against this outrageous administration [that] is causing us to lose our allies across the world, and causing devastation to people here at home,” said Diane Kolifrath, 64, a bike tour guide. “They’re gutting our government.”
Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign advocacy group, criticized the administration’s treatment of the LBGTQ+ community at the rally in Washington.
“The attacks that we’re seeing, they’re not just political. They are personal, y’all,” Robinson said.
Photo: Reuters
“We don’t want this America, y’all,” she added. “We want the America we deserve, where dignity, safety and freedom belong not to some of us, but to all of us.”
In Boston, demonstrators brandished signs such as “Hands off our democracy” and “Hands off our Social Security.”
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu (吳弭), who is Taiwanese American, said she does not want her children and others to live in a world in which threats and intimidation are government tactics and values like diversity and equality are under attack.
Photo: Reuters
“I refuse to accept that they could grow up in a world where immigrants like their grandma and grandpa are automatically presumed to be criminals,” she said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS