AP reported that protesters also opposed the far-right conservative plan Project 2025 and the growing influence of billionaire Elon Musk in government.
The protesters gathered in state parliamentary buildings from California, Michigan, Texas to Wisconsin and Indiana, holding banners against President Donald Trump's tough immigration policies, his back to the LGBTQ+ community and plans to force Palestinian resettlement out of the Gaza Strip.
In addition to President Donald Trump, the crowd also directed outrage towards Elon Musk, head of the Department of Government Efficiency (Department of Government Efficiency), a new agency founded by Mr. Trump. Concerns are growing that Elon Musk has access to federal financial data, including the payment system of the US Treasury Department.
In Lansing, Michigan, hundreds of people gathered in the cold to draw cartoons of Elon Musk. One protester, Catie Miglietti, expressed concern: "If we don't stop this now, it will be an attack on democracy."
At ticket City, medications said: "DOGE is illegal! Why does Elon have your social security data?" The opposition to DOGE increased as some members of the National Assembly expressed concern about the risk of security when a private technology director had access to the federal payment system.
Not only stopping at Elon Musk, the protester also opposes Project 2025, a conservative plan to restructure the government in the opposite direction, limiting the rights of women, immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community.
In Des Moines, Iowa, protesters stormed the state Capitol building to confront an event by the conservative group Moms for Liberty, sparking a tense confrontation with police that resulted in four arrests.
In Austin, Texas, hundreds of people paraded through the city center. In Phoenix, Arizona, the crowd chanted: "Journey to Elon!" and "No hatred, no fear, no immigrants are welcomed here!"
In St. Paul, Hoasilia, more than 1,000 protesters. rose Parten, 28, carries a sign from the Democratic campaign but has been renovated to "Harris-Walz was right". She said that she took to the streets because of her fear for the future of America.
In Montgomery, Alabama, hundreds of people gathered to protest the state's new law that recognizes only male and female genders — a policy that President Donald Trump has implemented nationwide through executive order.
