Editor’s note: On Saturday, April 26, 2025, Morrison, IL, became a site for the ongoing Hands Off protest movement, which began three weeks earlier across the Nation. Click here to read about protestors who demonstrated in Morrison.
The Hands Off protests are a series of demonstrations launched across the United States on Saturday, April 5, 2025, the largest one-day, Nationwide display of public resistance against the second administration of President Donald Trump. Organized under the “Hands Off!” banner, demonstrations voicing opposition to the administration’s policies occurred in over 1400 locations across all 50 States. [The day] drew an estimated 3-5 million participants, according to organizers. According to demonstration coordinators, the protests involved a coalition of over 150 progressive, labor union, pro-democracy, civil rights, LGBTQ+, and women’s rights groups.
The rallies protested a wide range of administration policies, including newly imposed global tariffs causing economic turmoil, significant cuts to Government agencies and the Federal workforce spearheaded by Elon Musk; imperiled union rights; immigration raids perceived as disorganized and politically motivated; rollbacks on LGBTQ+ rights; potentially harmful changes to Social Security; cuts to healthcare funding and research.
Protesters voiced broader concerns about democratic backsliding, growing authoritarianism, and the administration’s perceived orientation towards the interests of billionaires over American workers. [Protestors framed] their actions as a defense of American Democracy and economic well-being.
Overview
The Hands Off protests were led by a Nationwide coalition of organizations, including Civil Rights organizations; Veterans; Women’s Rights groups; Labor unions; LGBTQ+ advocates (for example, Indivisible.) Organizers saw the administration’s overreach on many issues: NATO; schools; libraries; courts; veteran services; fair elections; transgender rights; Social Security; Medicare; Medicaid; the Federal workforce; abortion rights; and many others.
In a document, organizers said they had three demands, bringing an end to:
• the billionaire takeover and rampant corruption of the Trump administration.
• slashing Federal funds for Medicaid, Social Security, and other programs working people rely on.
• the attacks on immigrants, trans people, and other communities.