Brennen Brothers, news editor

On Saturday, April 5, veteran groups, LGBTQ+ organizations, teachers and federal employees were some of the 25,000 who attended the “Hands Off!” protest in Saint Paul, in front of the Minnesota State Capitol. Many were outraged at Pres. Donald Trump’s tariffs, the ongoing displacement in Gaza, the U.S. abandonment of Ukraine and erasure of Black history, states Fight Back News. Women’s March Minnesota, 50501 and Indivisible Twin Cities organized the event, but an estimated amount of 1,300 groups across all 50 states participated in the event, reports Minnesota Reformer. 

Event fliers state that the “Hands Off!” event was “a national mass activation in defiance of the Trump-Musk billionaire takeover and the Republican assault on our freedoms and our communities. Hands Off! is an all-in moment for the pro-democracy, pro-worker movement—a demand, a warning, and a rallying cry that responds to the primary reasons for our mobilization. […] Our goal is to show that the people—the majority—are taking action to stop the corruption and power grab.” The flyer continues by stating the protesters’ demands: ending the billionaire takeover and corruption of the Trump administration, the end of cutting federal funds and ending attacks on immigrants, trans people and other communities. 

The event opened with drums and burning coal from an Indigenous dance group named Kalpulli KetzalCatlicue. The Kalpulli leader, Susan De Leon expressed to MPR, “We know what it means to fight for hundreds and hundreds of years. Four years are nothing.” 

According to MPR, many handmade signs and outfits were created for the event. A trio of women in red robes and white bonnets held a sign that said, “The Handmaid’s Tale was supposed to be fiction.” Another included Alicia Mason, who dressed up as the Statue of Liberty with red, white and blue paint coming from her eyes. Joy Thomas attended the protest with her 16-year-old son. She shares with MPR, “Growing up in the ‘70s, I was always told by my parents that things were getting better, that things would be better, and it’s — I can’t even describe how disheartening it is to know that my children are going to have to deal with things that I just assumed were never going to be an issue for them.”
Politicians spoke at the protests, including Saint Paul mayor Melvin Carter, Rep. Betty McCollum and Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, reports MPR. Fight Back News writes that similar protests occurred across Minnesota including a group in the port city of Duluth. MN AFL-CIO Pres. Bernie Burnham also delivered a speech to the protesters, ending it with a call to attend the May Day march, planned for May 1, organized by immigrant rights and labor groups.