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Every year on May 1, activists across the globe take to the streets to mark May Day, also called International Workers’ Day. In the U.S., this year’s protests have taken on new meaning, becoming yet another outlet for some Americans to voice their opposition to Donald Trump and what organizers call his administration’s “war on working people.”
We won’t back down—we will never stop fighting for our families and the rights and freedoms that propel opportunity and a better life for all Americans.
may day strong
Many of Thursday's nationwide protests were organized by May Day Strong, a coalition of local groups, including labor unions, teachers associations, and national organizations such as MoveOn, Women’s March and the 50501 movement.
A statement on the group’s website accuses the Trump administration of “defunding our schools, privatizing public services, attacking unions, and targeting immigrant families with fear and violence.”
“Working people built this nation and we know how to take care of each other,” the statement continues. “We won’t back down—we will never stop fighting for our families and the rights and freedoms that propel opportunity and a better life for all Americans. Their time is up.”
Organizers said more than a thousand events are planned across the country for Thursday, including large-scale demonstrations in major cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago, New York City and Washington, D.C. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who’s been crisscrossing the nation as part of his “Fighting Oligarchy” tour with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is set to speak at an event in Philadelphia.
This year’s May Day comes as Trump’s top campaign donor, billionaire Elon Musk, continues to use the Department of Government Efficiency to gut the federal budget, leaving tens of thousands of federal workers without jobs. May Day Strong said part of its goal was to demand “a country that puts our families over their fortunes.”
Thursday’s protests aren't the first major demonstrations against the president. In April, thousands participated in a series of “Hands Off” protests across the country, marking the largest single-day, nationwide display of resistance against the second Trump administration.
Along with the mass demonstrations, Trump continues to battle record-low approval ratings. According to an average of 16 independent national polls conducted over the last two weeks, Trump’s job approval rating stands at just 43%, placing him at the bottom of the list of modern presidents at this same point in their term.