Nationwide protests draw thousands as demonstrators stage “Free America” walkouts across U.S. cities (original) (raw)

The “Free America” nationwide walkouts, conducted by the Women’s March Network and multiple other organizations, were held last week to mark the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump returning to the White House. Thousands of protesters took to the streets across the nation in response to what they believed were discriminatory immigration policies and actions by the Trump administration. Protesters also highlighted the dismal civil rights record and increasing reliance on federal law enforcement powers.

Coordinated walkouts: The power of collective action

Walkout events coordinated across the U.S. began at 2 p.m. in each local time zone on Tuesday to demonstrate mass opposition to the policies being enforced by the Trump administration. Organizers of the “Free America” initiative stated that their objective was to achieve something greater than simply a political statement; specifically, to disrupt societal functions and show the capacity for social pressure through collective action by ordinary citizens.

Organizers of the “Free America” initiative intended to use the walkout to illustrate how ordinary citizens can withhold the “labor,” “participation,” and “consent” required to sustain the institutions that, they argued, were contributing to the nation’s authoritarian drift. Thus, the walkout represented both a symbolic and practical means to establish momentum for long-term civic participation – as opposed to a singular protest event.

Nationwide – ranging from New York City to Atlanta, Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles – hundreds or thousands of individuals took part in massive protests and marches demanding significant alterations in federal policy and practice.

Protesters gathered outside Trump Tower

While the size and tenor of the demonstrations varied from city to city, there was a common thread of coordinated participation among the crowds. A particularly visible gathering took place outside of Trump Tower in New York City, where protesters marched towards the tower.

Many participants expressed concern about the increased level of federal crackdowns on immigrant communities and the increasing use of federal tactical units in metropolitan areas.

With many crowds reaching the peak of emotion and numbers, much of the protest activity across various sites was characterized as peaceful, with officials taking steps in advance to ensure the safety of the protesters and to manage crowd flow and vehicle traffic.

Flashpoints, student walkouts, and a nationwide movement

Protest organizers tied the walkout to Trump’s renewed push on immigration reform, which opponents say has fueled the escalation of enforcement clashes between federal agents and the public. That sense of urgency escalated following the shooting death of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer during an enforcement operation in Minnesota. The shooting received extensive media coverage and was cited by protesters throughout the nation as an example of the personal risks associated with enforcement actions related to immigration.

High school students participated in the walkouts despite cold temperatures and, in some cases, contrary to guidance provided by school administrators. Many saw the high school participation as a sign of increasing levels of civic engagement by young Americans.

Nationwide and international participation expanded rapidly

Over 800 events were scheduled across all 50 states, with tens of thousands of registrants prior to the event. The broad geographic distribution of events across large cities, suburban communities, and small towns was seen by organizers as a sign of an expansive and rapidly developing national resistance movement, strengthened further by reports of solidarity actions abroad in Canada, France, Italy, and the Netherlands.

The Trump Administration dismissed the protests as being motivated by partisanship. The protests’ organizers and participants said the protests reflected a larger cultural and political shift. At the end of the day, they said the hope was that the walkouts represented the start of a longer-term effort to generate greater national engagement and influence future political action.