"Hands Off!" Protest, New York City, April 5th, 2025. The "Hands Off!" Protest is the first in a series of nationwide mass protests against the actions of the Trump administration. The focus of this protest was to send a message that there should be no cuts to essential government programs that the people need. Donald Trump and Elon Musk have convinced Trump voters that the only way for the United States government to "save money" is by cutting services that ordinary working-class Americans need, such as Social Security, Medicare, the National Weather Service, FEMA, the National Parks Service, and other programs and agencies. Rational individuals understand that if the country were in such dire straits and desperately in need of cash (it's not), then raising taxes on billionaires and multi-billion dollar corporations that do business here would be the sensible way to address any national financial shortfalls. To take away things from people who already have very little, or to remove safety nets designed to help people in times of tragedy makes absolutely no sense when billionaires could be taxed appropriately -- and they'd still be billionaires. Of course, the truth is that the crisis is made up for the purpose of dismantling the government and consolidating political power. The protests were a resounding success, not only in New York City which saw thousands of people take over 5th Avenue, but all across the country. Turnout was much higher than anticipated, and many protestors are looking forward to hitting the streets again in the near future. --PWH3
