Texans Join Nationwide Protests Against Trump Administration

By Meredith McKelvey

Reporting Texas

 

As protests erupted in state capitals around the country Wednesday, hundreds of protesters marched through downtown Austin to voice their anger at the Trump administration. 

Enraged by President Donald Trump’s far-reaching actions during the first two weeks of his second term, protesters waved signs and chanted in unison at the Texas Capitol and on the streets of downtown Austin. While protesters had varied reasons for demonstrating against the Trump administration, they shared a common fear: the demise of democratic institutions in the United States. 

“At some point, you can only step on people’s necks for so long,” said Benny de la Vega, an American who immigrated from the Philippines in 1985 and said he is seeing similarities to the dictatorship he fled. “At some point, everyone will have a common, shared understanding that their rights are being taken away. When we lose representation, then things need to change.”

The Austin protest was part of the 50501 Movement — for 50 protests in 50 states on one day — that began as a Reddit thread in late January and sparked protests nationwide Wednesday. The group described itself as a coalition of grassroots organizers, and it announced a partnership with Political Revolution, a political action committee with ties to volunteers from Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign. 

The groups called for Trump’s impeachment, reversal of his executive orders, scrutiny into billionaire Elon Musk’s role in the White House and reinstatement of diversity, equity and inclusion programs that Trump has removed.

Protesters on the steps of the State Capitol used bullhorns to vent their anguish over a wide range of issues, including Trump’s promise to increase deportations and Musk’s role in targeting government programs such as USAID. With chants of “Stop the Coup” and “Si Se Puede,” protesters rallied as state troopers watched from the sidelines and a drone buzzed overhead. 

Greg Blackman, a protester from East Austin, described the Trump administration – and its supporters –  as racist and hateful toward minorities, especially undocumented immigrants. 

“These are people who are just here trying to work and better their lives,” Blackman said, “and somehow these billionaires convinced poor people that the reason they’re poor is because of Mexicans, Blacks and Puerto Ricans, while the billionaires are robbing us blind.”

After demonstrating on the steps of the Capitol, protesters marched down Congress Avenue, shutting down several lanes of traffic in downtown Austin. Onlookers stood in doorways as they watched throngs of protesters march past them, with some smiling and shaking their heads in awe. Several drivers in nearby cars honked their horns in solidarity as traffic stalled. 

A group of men in suits watched the protest from the balcony of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, an influential think tank located on Congress Avenue that has shaped conservative policy in Texas for decades. The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a coalition member of Project 2025, a policy initiative that advocates for mass deportation, dismantling DEI practices and installing Trump allies in government positions. Kevin Roberts, the TPPF’s former chief executive, is now president of the Heritage Foundation, which sponsored Project 2025. 

Since his inauguration on Jan. 20, Trump has signed multiple executive orders that align with those proposed in Project 2025. Meanwhile, Musk is leading a government efficiency effort that has overhauled two government agencies, provided incentives for federal employees to quit their jobs and ended USAID. 

Despite a heavy presence of state troopers on motorcycles who encircled the protesters and barricaded several intersections, no arrests were made. Winding through downtown Austin, protesters returned to Congress Avenue and regrouped at the Capitol, where they continued to participate in chants. 

While several protesters acknowledged that protesting may not produce tangible results, the protests in Austin and around the country were symbolic of widespread unease with the Trump administration’s rapid consolidation of power. 

Charles Lewis drove three hours from Elkhart, in East Texas, to the Capitol after hearing about the protest from a podcaster he follows. Lewis, who protested the Vietnam War during his days as a college student at the University of Southern Mississippi, said that the march through downtown Austin was “encouraging.” 

“It gives a little bit of hope that Americans can still get in the streets and do what it takes to stop this tyranny from taking hold,” he said. 

Another protest is planned for Feb. 23, organizers said.