Tag Archives: Trump

Hundreds protest Trump and Musk in Tampa’s 50501 event

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On the 17th of February, the “50501” protests rocked the US from coast to coast. Up to 5,000 may have participated in DC, maybe 1,000 in Tampa, and hundreds more in a boisterous protest on Kenndedy Street in front of Tampa City Hall.

Tampa protesters adopted a new tactic: closing up and holding the banner across the street when traffic was stopped for a red light, then using the walk sign countdown to clear the street before the light turned green. This allowed the entire flow of afternoon rush hour traffic to see the protest instead of just the same dozen or so. A great many drivers cheered and honked in solidarity, even here in Florida.

A few stray Trumpers were chased away, the later ones warned “Nazis aren’t safe here!” Throughout the protest, Trump and Elon Musk were explicitly called not just Fascists but Nazis. This is what they are and Naziism must be stopped NOW.

Reportback from DC and Arlington TeslaTakedown protests

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The 15th of February was a national day of protests against Elon Musk and DOGE at Tesla showrooms. Two of these protests were in the DC area: one in Arlington, VA and one in DC’s Georgetown.

Someone had a “Boycott Tesla” sign. On the Geortetown sidewalks someone chalked “Fascist in the mirror are closer than they appear, and someone chalked up “You want a Swasticar?”

What Musk needs to be asking is “you want fries with that?”

DC Media Group posted the reportback below:

Protesters Target Elon Musk Tesla Car Dealerships Over His Federal Agency Cuts

Protesters march on Kennedy Center after takeover by Trump, drag ban.

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On Feb 13, protesters marched on DC’s Kennedy Center for a fiesty queer dance party including drag performances out front. The cold weather didn’t slow it down in the least. The protesters were there in response to Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Center and almost immediate announcement of a drag ban there. Protesters declared that “DC Says this is our house, we’ll do it anyway!”

On Feb 12, Donald Trump was installed as chairman of the Kennedy Center’s Board of trustees after a vote by directors all appointed by Trump to do so. Trump has vowed to ban drag shows there. Other performers of a wide variety of styles are now cancelling appearances at what may as well be the Trump Center. Trump is reviled in DC after all, and the “Trump Center” could face a de facto boycott.

Protest against Trump and Musk exceeds all expectations in Orlando

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On the 8th of February, far more protesters than expected turned out for a protest against Trump, Musk, and Fascism than organizers had planned. Well over 100 people, possibly twice that or more over the course of the afternoon showed up for the rally on Alafya Trail near a busy shopping mall and equally busy highway. Orlando cops threatened arrest for more than 100 people without a permit, but backed down after a stern lecture from FL State rep Anna Eskamini about constitutional rights.

Some of the organizers retreated before this threat was rebuffed, warning some vulnerable folks to get out in case OPD launched their 3ed attack in less than a year. Mass arrests would have been impossible without hundreds or even thousands of cops due to the open terrain and number of people. More people kept coming though, so those who left were quickly replaced. Eventually the crowd split into two units to ensure cops didn’t decide they had an excuse for a repeat.

Experienced organizers often scoff at threats related to permits, but nobody knows what the law is or if there IS any law with Trump in office. Thus the organizers acted with caution in dangerous times.

Once again though, protesters have opposed Trump in the open and gotten away with it. Trump’s threats of martial law and ordering National Guard troops to fire on protesters have not been delivered on. Activists in Chicago and Aurora served up stinging defeats to ICE, and the big LA ICE protests seem to be going down mostly unopposed.

Protesters and organizers have seized the initiative from Trump, and anyone familiar with warfare knows what that means. We have the ball, now is the time to PUSH with everything we’ve got, doing more of what is working.

My guess is that those behind Trump cannot afford to lose their fortunes to the economic devastation a hot civil war would bring. Presumably they also know shooting at protesters in the now very tense and heavily armed United States would almost guarantee such a civil war and wreck their economic position. So far, Trump has been forced to eat his words and blustering threats about martial law.

Protesters oppose Netanyahu’s meetup with Trump, resulting call for US occupation of Gaza

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On the 4th of February, Israeli dictator Netanyahu visited US dictator Trump in Washington DC. Outside protesters deployed to oppose the genocidal intentions of both dictators.

Trump’s call for the US to “take over” Gaza and possibly commit US troops was met with outrage by protesters and no doubt the entire Palestinian disapora.

The protest featured three mock IOF soldiers dragging a chained Lady Liberty this way and that as she tried to escape. Behind her was a giant shackled Netanyahu.

Protesters vowed there would be no peace with genocide, and that Intifada would continue until total victory.

For the moment open protest against Trump remains possible. Although Trump is blustering about deporting IN STATUS students from other nations for pro-Palestine protests, the cops did not assault this protest. There were some menacing maneuvers on their part but nothing came of that. Iin one case the cops left a bunch of cop bikes unattended, I’m thinking these were bait. Nobody took the bait. There was no attempt at a kettle and I did not see or hear any snatch-and-grab arrests

Huge Treasury Dept (DC) protest against Trump raises “lock him up!” chant

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On the 4th of February, a big crowd gathered outside the US Treasury Department to oppose Elon Musk’s “DOGE” takeover and penetration of large parts of the Federal government

The takeover of many Federal agences by Elon Musk and his “DOGE” thugs is getting some serious pushback in DC. For Musk’s goons to gain access to the personal data of everyone who ever filed taxes online is raising hackles. So is handing over disbursement of Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security payments to the man who destroyed Twitter.

The civil servants whom Trump dismisses as “Deep State” are among the few people who can get a leash on Trump from the inside before he forces serious fighting for everyone else. Between that and the Social Security/Medicaid/Medicare situation this is not just an “inside the Beltway” issue. In fact, the threat to Social Security makes it a “bread and butter” issue.

J20 reportbacks: Elon Musk’s Nazi salute, Proud Boys roam DC, and Trump protesters deploy in DC, Orlando, and Tampa

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On Jan 20 2025, Trump was inaugurated into his second (and much more dangerous) term in DC. Elon Musk gave a Nazi salute from a Presidential podium and dangerous Proud Boys thugs roamed parts of DC. Fortunately there are no reports of them finding the anti-Trump protestes. Protesters deployed against Trump in DC, Orlando FL, and Tampa FL plus a great many other cities. The much smaller numbers than in 2017 and lack of any use of force may reflect a belief that peaceful protest is not effective against hard Fascists like the current Trump team. Hopefully people are preparing other means of resistance. With luck, ICE will find many unpleasant surprises waiting for them when they attempt to assault urban neighborhoods such as Chicago where they are expected

Note that speakers at both the Orlando and Tampa protests stressed the role of local police and sheriff’s departments in implementing Trump’s planned anti-migrant pogrom. This is NOT just ICE, it is bigoted, racist cops and sheriffs deputies throughout the US. Even in so-called “sanctuary cities” the cops are usually the same racist slavecatcher descendents they are everywhere else. One speaker reminded Tampa protesters that DeSantis is backing Trump by making participation in ICE’s 297(g) program mandatory for all police and sheriff’s departments in the state of Florida. If Trump intends to embed ICE in every activity and phase of life in the so-called “United” states, that is textbook totalitarianism, a key hallmark of capitol-F Fascism

In DC a guillotine was displayed in the march and rally, this full height French-style guillotine was even marched down the hill on 16th st from Malcolm X Park!

A guiillotine at a protest of a GOP Inauguration is a traditon that goes back to the lead banner at the 2005 Counterinaugural against GW Bush’s second inauguration. It was just an image on the lead banner that year but it still made the point.

Elsewhere in DC, protesters heckled the MAGA meatheads entering the Arena to watch Trump’s coronation ON TV since the ceremony was moved into the US Capitol. Meanwhile a dangerous pack of Proud Boys in their trademark black and gold/black and yellow roamed the streets. This was BEFORE Trump pardoned all but 14 J6 defendents and commuted the sentences of the remaining 14.

Since leaving the Inauguration, Trump has issued a flood of dangerous executive orders, it appears he may be trying to do as much as possible essentially by decree.

Code Pink disrupts Marco Rubio’s Senate confirmation hearing to become Sec of State

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On the 15th of January, the US Senate held a confirmation hearing to consider FL Senator Marco Rubio’s appointment by Trump as Secretary of State. Code Pink got into the hearing and disrupted it, at the price that the Capitol Police were very rough in removing them. Unknown at the moment whether they were arrested or just detained and expelled, but they were searched and cuffed so assuming this was arrests.

This was with five days to go until J20. To engage in civil disobedience at this point against anything related to Trump is to take a very considerable personal risk, and this speaks highly of Code Pink’s courage under fire,

2024 in activism-and in war

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Video of protests and direct actions through the year against genocide in Gaza, against both political parties, and against Trump. Intercut in places with a few clips of war footage from Occupied Palestine and Lebanon. Much but not all of the DC and Florida stuff I “saw with my own hands.”

Three big DC Palestine protests in this, including the humiliating defeat for the Park Police when Netanyahu showed up in DC. Both of the police attacks on protesters near Lake Eola in Orlando, FL and the leadup to them. The wave of university encampments and the fighting to defend them is also here.

War footage includes a drone bombing near the US Embassy in Tel Aviv, the pager explosions in Lebanon, and the Oct 1 storm of warheads raining on an Israeli airbase that destroyed much of the IOF’s F-35 fighter jets. That clip is followed by Palestine Action’s successful direct action strike on a UK Elbit plant’s clean room. That strike disable the manufacture of at least one component without which no new F-35’s to replace the ones the Iranian missile strike blew up.

As the year comes to a close, Trump becomes President-elect and open street protests slow down as people prepare for the brutal times ahead. Other things start to happen though.

Closing with two inspirational scenes: Cops being bonked with water jugs at a University protest for Palestine, and protesters outside the US firing a multi-barreled Roman candle at riot cops and a water cannon as though it was a Vulcan revolving cannon.

Black Friday protest against genocide, repression, and Trump held outside Tampa shopping mall

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On Black Friday (AKA Buy Nothing Day) 2024, protesters showed up outside the International Plaza shopping mall in Tampa near the airport.

The protest called out US bipartisan support for the genocide in Gaza, and pointed out that on that issue and several others, Trump will be continuing and intensifying Biden’s policies. That said, Trump’s larger agenda was then called out by speakers as “a declaration of war on the working class.”

One speaker emphasized the success of abolitionist Vigilance Committees after passage of the Fugitive Slave Act, notably in Springfield, Ohio, the town later slandered by Trump. There, vigilance committee members successfully blocked all of the slaveowners by force of arms from recapturing their escaped workers once they got up and running.(This portion not on the video as it is long and it can take many hours to cover all faces on a long video segment).

Speakers also emphasized that neither party has any intention of doing anything about issues like rising prices or anything else harming the general public. Thus we have the cop cities being built across the US after the Uprising, the RICO charges against protesters there, and all the rest of the recent and very heavy repression.

In my judgement, the true message sent by the repression is to “go big or go home” while they ensure fewer and fewer have a home to go back to.

This protest got heckled a couple times, in both cases by presumed Christian nationalists, who are quite common in Florida. Wasn’t nearly as bad though as at the Nov 9 anti-Trump protest at Tampa City hall though.