by Boris Gaidai

On Tuesday, March 4th, upwards of 100 people gathered at MLK Plaza to protest against President Trump’s State of the Union Address. This protest happened alongside 17 others in Florida alone, all of them part of the new 50501 movement.

According to their website, the 50501 movement is dedicated to protesting against the Trump administration “ripping apart democratic institutions and civil liberties.” The protest that happened last March 4th and the movement locally is no different.

According to the protest’s organizer, who asked to remain anonymous, “We’re trying to be a big tent where everyone can come and meet people who are like-minded.”

“We need everyone to come together – no matter what else we disagree on – to say that this is not okay what’s going on in our country right now. I’m a firm believer in coalitions, right now that’s against authoritarianism and fascism taking root in our government.”

He went on to say that the movement aims to do one big action a month. He said, “They’re done for this month right now. We’re trying not to burn anybody out because this is going to be a very long haul.”

While there’s only going to be one action a month from the 50501 movement, that doesn’t include the actions of groups within and outside the movement. Locally, people are organizing around issues like immigration, gender-affirming care, and reproductive rights.

As the Trump administration moves forward with its policies throughout the next four years, there are going to be more and more protests against them. In the 50501 organizer’s words, “The more people getting out and doing something about it, the better.”