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Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Thousands gather across Pennsylvania for May Day rallies
A crowd rallies outside of Philadelphia City Hall on May 1, 2025. (Capital-Star photo by John Cole) Pennsylvania's capital and largest city were home to May Day rallies on Thursday – as people took to the streets to protest President Donald Trump's economic, social, and immigration policies. A few thousand traveled to Philadelphia on a warm Thursday afternoon to celebrate a 'Workers over Billionaires' rally, hosted by the Philadelphia AFL-CIO, featuring U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Daniel Bauder, President of the Philadelphia AFL-CIO, described Philadelphia as the 'birthplace of America's labor movement.' In the current moment, Bauder said he thinks a lot about the 1960s and the struggles of the Civil Rights labor movements during that era and how the two worked together. He thinks there's 'so many opportunities' for labor and human rights groups to join together to meet the moment. Debra Boston, who made her way from Lackawanna County, stood outside Philadelphia City Hall with her sign, more than two hours before Sanders took the stage. 'My rights, the Constitution, deplorable president,' she said, as the reason she made the trip. Attendees and speakers alike were united against the Trump administration. Philadelphia added its voice to Sanders' rallies, which he has dubbed the 'Fighting Oligarchy' tour. Trump celebrated 100 days in office this week with a rally in Michigan. Paula Paul, a member of the Granny Peace Brigade Philadelphia, is a fan of Sanders, but noted he wasn't the only reason she was on hand. 'We came because we're part of the movement trying to raise issues against the current regime,' she said. 'We want our grandchildren to know, our neighbors to know, that we're standing up against many of the current policies and the disrespect and disregard for human life.' A few who spoke with the Capital-Star, who opposed Trump in the 2024 election, said he's been worse than they'd expected. Carol Rogers, an AFSCME District Council 47 retiree, lives in Philadelphia. She said she's 'heartbroken' with how Trump has conducted himself during his presidency. She said she was disappointed, as an activist, how he is putting an end to the strides the nation has made over the past few decades to end racial discrimination. 'It's a very frightening time for everybody,' Rogers said. Robert Frederick, a veteran who lives in Philadelphia, said he was at a protest at Mar-A-Lago in Florida about a month ago and described Trump's first 100 days as a 'circus.' 'He has no ability to govern,' Frederick said. While Trump's approval rating has shrunk, the Democratic Party also currently isn't gaining in popularity. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE One thing most who spoke with the Capital-Star in Philadelphia agreed on is they want Democrats to be more vocal. 'They need to get together and fight. Some of them are fighting, but they don't have any unified fighting,' said Joan Lukas, another member of the Granny Peace Brigade Philadelphia. 'I think they need to stand up, they need to go after him and they need to just throw themselves up here, because they work for us, and they're not working for us right now,' Boston said. Sanders, saying May Day 'in a sense, is a sacred holiday,' celebrated the impact that the trade union movement has had on American society. But, he spoke at length about the concerns he has with the current state of the country, directing blame at the Trump administration and others who support him. 'Brothers and sisters, our job right now, in my view, is two fold,' Sanders said. 'First, we have got to fight Trump every single day. Secondly, we need to have a vision as to where our country goes in the future.' 'And here is the bottom line and I say that to my Democratic colleagues in the Congress. Stop defending the status quo economically,' he added. Rev. Gregory Edwards, Executive Director of POWER Interfaith, called for a 'moral revolution' during his speech and echoed the power of a joint effort between labor and faith. 'We have been here before,' Edwards said. 'We have seen what happens when profits are placed above people. When workers are pushed to the margins, but history also shows us that when labor and faith come together, mountains can be moved, wages can be raised, policies can be changed and communities, neighborhoods, streets can flourish.' The immigration issue was also on the minds of those on hand. 'I am Kilmar Abrego Garcia, I am Mahmoud Khalil,' said Jimmy Williams Jr., General President of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) to applause. 'We all are one.' The recent detention of Garcia and Khalil have garnered headlines nationwide and have resulted in some protests. There was no shortage of criticism towards Elon Musk during the speeches in Philadelphia, as well as on signs held by various attendees. No Pennsylvania elected officials took the stage to speak during the rally, but U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-5th District), state Rep. Joe Hohenstein (D-177th District), and Philadelphia Councilmembers Jim Harrity, a Democrat, and Nicolas O'Rourke, a member of the Working Families Party, were in attendance. Williams called for solidarity with the rest of the American labor movement and thanked Sanders for being present on Thursday to 'tell us the truth and a vision for the future.' 'Today, on May Day, we as the working class must declare our independence from both political parties,' Williams said. 'We stand up for what's right. We have to look and stare down every politician and tell them that if you don't stand with us, we don't stand with you.' 'A reason for everyone to scream' The protest in Harrisburg, which organizers estimate brought around 400 attendees, had no big name speakers. But union leaders and activists played songs, chanted and offered speeches from the top of the state Capitol steps. While it was ostensibly a protest for May Day, and some wore union garb, attendees held signs for a host of disparate causes. Some called for President Trump's removal. Some had Ukrainian or rainbow flags. Others had slogans opposing Elon Musk or the U.S.'s role in the war in Gaza. The rally was held by a local 50501 chapter, part of a loose coalition of grassroots organizers that's been holding protests in capitals around the country since the beginning of Trump's second term. And the nonuniformity was part of the design. 'It started off as a reason for everyone to scream,' TJ Demetriou, a 42-year-old from Hershey, and one of the organizers, told the Capital-Star. Demetriou, a veteran, said he had never been involved in protesting or politics before Trump's latest term. But he was alarmed by what he saw. In particular, what he believes are 'threats to the Constitution.' He cited attacks on free speech and the press, deportations without due process, and a consolidation of power in the executive branch. But the protests, he said, were a way to unite people focused on different issues around their opposition to Trump, especially as many echoed the same criticism voiced at the Philadelphia event – Democrats weren't doing enough. 'I thought we'd be putting up more of a fight. Not us, but Democrats in power,' said Nick Frey, a 26-year-old from Harrisburg. Though he considers himself a 'leftist' and not a Democrat, Frey voted for Harris in November. He sees the party as the most viable option at the moment. Frey carried a sign that admonished Trump's 'brand of oligarchy.' 'He's trying to create a tribute system with our allies, when he feels like they aren't paying their fair share,' Frey said. 'He's ruined our good will built over the past 80 years since the end of World War II. And he's done that in the first 100 days.' Still, he said the most important issue for him at the moment is the Trump administration's treatment of immigrants and minorities more broadly. Carol Nodgaard, 66, came to the protest from Lancaster. 'I used to teach history and government,' she said. 'I can't control what necessarily goes on in Congress, but I can call, I can write and I can show out.' Nodgaard said she lives off her social security benefits and 401k savings. But she's worried that Trump's aggressive cuts to the federal government may affect the social security program, and his tariff policies have hurt her investments. 'Hopefully it'll come back up,' she said. But Nodgaard said, as a gay person, the administration's hostility towards transgender people has been particularly affecting. And being from a family of farmers in Nebraska, their treatment of immigrants has been hard to watch as well. 'Who's working on the farms and the meat packing plants?' Nodgaard said. 'They're immigrants doing the work. But all their workers have disappeared because they're afraid of being deported.' Still, she's heartened by the protest movement, which she thinks is stronger than it was in Trump's first term. She's been to multiple rallies since Trump took office in January. 'It's a marathon, not a sprint,' she said. She said she'll be back in Harrisburg again Friday to see Sen. Sanders speak at the Farm Show Complex. Sanders will be in the capitol city on Friday and Bethlehem on Saturday for his 'Fighting Oligarchy' tour. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sen. Bernie Sanders to bring tour to Pa. criticizing Trump's policies
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) campaigns for Vice President Kamala Harris at Erie High School in Erie, Pa. Oct. 26, 2024 (Capital-Star photo) U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders will be making a three-day swing through Pennsylvania starting on Thursday as he continues his nationwide tour speaking out against President Donald Trump. On Thursday afternoon, Sanders will join the Philadelphia AFL-CIO at City Hall for the group's May Day 2025 rally. 'Join labor, immigrant, and community organizations united, with special guest Senator Bernie Sanders, to say invest in people, not the billionaires,' the Philadelphia AFL-CIO writes in an online sign-up sheet for the event. 'We are united and rising up for a world that works for all of us, not just Elon Musk and his cronies.' The rally in Philadelphia, which is scheduled to kickoff at 4 p.m., will be followed by a march. On Friday afternoon, Sanders will take his 'Fighting Oligarchy' tour to Harrisburg at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex. The following day, he will lead another rally at Lehigh University in Bethlehem. U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-17th District), who represents a district in western Pennsylvania, will join Sanders at the rallies on Friday and Saturday. Musical performances are also scheduled before both events. In February, Sanders began this tour with a gathering in Nebraska and has since visited several states across the country. He has been promoting the events as, 'hitting the road to have real discussions across America on how we move forward to take on the Oligarchs and corporate interests who have so much power and influence in this country.' U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has been present at several events with Sanders, although she is not scheduled to participate in any of the Pennsylvania stops this week. Sanders visit to the Keystone States comes as President Trump wrapped up the 100th day of his second term in the Oval Office. Trump won Pennsylvania's 19 electoral votes over Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris in last year's presidential election. Although Sanders will be in the Democratic stronghold of Philadelphia on Thursday, his visit to Harrisburg and Bethlehem are both in congressional districts represented by U.S. Reps. Ryan Mackenzie and Scott Perry, both Republicans. According to the Cook Political Report, a national ratings outlet, both Mackenzie and Perry are currently the only races in Pennsylvania in 2026 they describe as a 'toss up.'
