LEXINGTON, Mass.—Patriots will show up once again at Lexington Common in Massachusetts on April 19, just as they did 250 years ago. And they’ll be combating tyranny, as they did back then.
But these patriots will be peaceful, not armed. They will be facing the Trump administration rather than British redcoats, as their forbears did there and at nearby Concord, touching off the American Revolution.
They’ll be campaigning against Trump and his partner, the oligarchic Elon Musk, who is conducting “a hostile government takeover” and “a direct attack on democracy” in America.
The 10:45 am Eastern Time rally at the site of the first battle of the Revolution is one of 540-and-counting events nationwide and abroad, organized by the grass-roots 50501 movement, the AFL-CIO and many of their allies. and its allies.
In addition to the nation’s largest labor federation the 150 endorsing groups include, Indivisible, the. Progressive Democrats of America, the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and the Human Rights Campaign.
Their objective: To once again demonstrate the mass resistance of millions to the cutthroat tactics of Trump against federal workers, and Musk’s wholesale slashing of numbers of workers, federal programs, and federal agencies. The demonstrators aim also to warn about what both Trump and Musk intend to do going forward, particularly with regards to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
The last round of protests a month ago drew several million into the streets, including overseas in Lisbon, Portugal, London and Merida, Mexico. Organizers hope for 11 million this time.
London and Merida haven’t checked in—yet—on this year’s list, but Lisbon has, joined by Amsterdam, Holland, and Dublin, Ireland. The theme pushed by marchers in Dublin will be “Americans against fascism.” The new round of protests will start early, on April 16 at some sites, including in Cambridge, Mass., and New Haven, Conn.
“April 19 is not random—it is symbolic,” Matthew Sanscrainte, a national organizer for 50501, posted. “It marks the anniversary of the battles of Lexington and Concord, the first shots fired in the American Revolution. Now, centuries later, another revolution is brewing—not with muskets, but with marches, megaphones, and movements.
“This protest is about far more than Donald Trump, though he remains the grotesque embodiment of what ails our democracy. It is about the concentration of power, the erasure of voting rights, the war on women’s autonomy, and the corporate coup happening in real time—engineered by tech oligarchs like Elon Musk, and enabled by cowardice in Congress.”
Workers and unions are especially under fire, Sanscrainte added, along with women and people of color.
“While corporations rake in record profits, wages remain stagnant, unions are busted, and billionaires like Musk are handed contracts behind closed doors. This is not capitalism. This is feudalism with Wi-Fi.
“Our movement shows the world the American working class will not sit idly by as plutocrats rip apart their democratic institutions and civil liberties while undermining the rule of law,” another sponsoring website said.
Scientific surveys show that when 3.5% of a nation’s population is out in the streets, they catch politicians’ attention and move the needle on issues. That’s why organizers want to mobilize 11 million people, equal to the combined populations of Chicago and New York City.
Both those cities will host marches. Details of Chicago ’s “People’s Protest—Joy As Resistance” are still being worked out. There will also be a march in the suburb of Schaumburg, Ill., and one in Quincy, Ill.
The Big Apple’s march will—again—begin at Bryant Park, site of the first “We are the 99%” protests seeking “$15 and a union” more than a decade ago. This march’s theme: “Declaration of Interdependence: March To Protect Migrants And The Planet.”
Continued resistance “essential”
“Continued resistance is essential to make a difference,” 50501 declared in a social media posting. “A people-powered coalition rising in defense of democracy” will again “unite all 50 states to resist authoritarianism and protect our freedoms through peaceful protest, civic action, and solidarity. 50501 = 50 States. 50 Protests. 1 Movement.”
Trump’s actions “have alienated many Americans and they have pointed to steps such as downsizing the federal workforce, shutting down Social Security offices, enacting legislation that acknowledges only two genders, deporting immigrants, exerting pressure on allied countries, slashing budgets for healthcare and education, and dismantling key government institutions,” their platform states.
The latest agencies to feel the Trump-Musk bite will be National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting System, sources who asked not to be named told several media outlets. The two are particular thorns in the side of Trump, Musk, their corporate class backers and followers among the public.
For Trump, Musk and the rest of the radical right, NPR and PBS are a nest of leftists and subversives. But repeated attempts to defund the two broadcast services failed, so Musk is taking his trying to cut them to a level where they will be ineffective.
“The April 19 protests represent a pivotal moment in American civil resistance,” backers say. “As sweeping federal changes reshape public policy and political norms, millions are expected to take to the streets to demand accountability, equity, and a more democratic future. This movement marks a renewed commitment to grassroots organizing, aiming to ensure that power remains with the people—not just the powerful.”
One top protest on the 19th will be a march at the U.S. Capitol, starting at noon. An hour later, Cincinnati will see a rally at Fountain Square. An hour before the D.C. march, there will be one aimed at the state government complex in Raleigh, N.C. And in Austin, Texas, one of the big blue dots in the deep-red Lone Star State, marchers will kick off from Congress Avenue and 11th Street at 12:30 pm Central Time. Other planned marches, so far, range as far south as Galveston, Texas, and as far west as Hawaii.
Other cities will see specific themes. There’s a “Protest to protect our constitutional rights” on April 16 in, fittingly, Cambridge, Mass. New Haven, Conn., will also hold its march that day. Hands Off!, another lead sponsor, will hold a nationwide conference planning call at 8 pm Eastern Time on April 16.
The April 19 afternoon march on City Hall in Los Angeles will declare “Billionaires: Hands Off Workers!” Both San Francisco and Oakland will echo that: “Stop the billionaire agenda!”
And members of Government Employees Local 558 will rally on the 19th at Miami International Airport to show support for the demand by the 45,000 Transportation Security Officers—the airport screeners—to reclaim their union contract, which Trump yanked and ripped up. Roanoke, Va., marchers will host an interfaith pray-in. Colebrook, N.H., marchers will “rally to show support for our USPS and our veterans,” organizers posted.
“We need to stand up, stay visible and not lose momentum! Support our postal workers and refuse to accept the privatization of the best postal system in the world. We also need to show our Veterans that we value them – they have been dismissed and disrespected by the new administration!!”
For details on marches in your area, go to www.FiftyFifty.One.org.
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