Leftists Protest Against Trump Administration, Elon Musk
Various progressive causes and conspiracy theories were represented at Wednesday's demonstration
Wisconsin leftists gathered at the state capitol on Wednesday to protest in support of various progressive causes, including access to abortion and experimental transgender procedures for children.
The protest was just one of many demonstrations across the country organized under the 50501 initiative. It was largely planned through Discord servers, according to organizers who spoke to The Madison Federalist.
However, the protest had unclear leadership, which resulted in some tension. Twice during the demonstration, the group divided into two, visibly frustrating some participants. At one point, about fifty demonstrators split off to march to the federal courthouse. An hour later, another small group marched down State Street.
Demonstrators said they were there to show support for democracy and chanted, “This is what democracy looks like.”
Liz, an organizer of the demonstration who wore a neon vest, believed the 2024 election was affected by “shady business.”
“I think some people may have been paid to do certain things and vote certain ways,” she said.
“I’ve heard Trump himself saying, you know, ‘Elon is so good with computers and he fixed it, and he rigged it.’ I’ve heard different sources from different countries saying that Trump owes a whole lot of people a whole lot of things because they were able to help him get this election.”
Armed members of the John Brown Gun Club, a militant leftist gun rights organization, openly carried on capitol grounds.
Lilith Kievskaya, who wished to be identified using she/her pronouns, said she was there for “community self-defense” because “a lot of people, rightfully, do not trust law enforcement.”
“We advocate for the arming and organizing of marginalized communities, especially those who are under attack by the reactionary forces of capitalism.”
There were numerous children, many of whom appeared to be middle and elementary school-aged, carrying signs including “My Gender is No” and waving transgender flags.
At least two demonstrators carried signs with the face of Luigi Mangione, the man who murdered healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
One of those demonstrators, who said his name was Anthony, told The Madison Federalist he carried the sign because “this man cares more about us than anyone in Congress does.”
“At least Luigi, at least he did something. [...] This man took action into his own hands, and whether or not you agree with what he did, one thing we can all agree on is that, well, it’s something, and that’s more than nothing.”
An organizer of the protest who spoke to The Federalist had mixed feelings about the sign, but said, “Seeing someone stand up to the tyranny of the healthcare system, or really any sort of tyranny, I think was refreshing for a lot of people.”
Two individuals who identified themselves as field organizers for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin were present and handed out literature for state Supreme Court candidate Susan Crawford.
At least one of the speakers encouraged demonstrators to vote for Crawford and said the “April 1st election is critical.”
Participants came from across the state. One said she came from Kenosha to “defend democracy” and get her “rights back.”
One individual wearing a ski mask, who identified as both nonbinary and transgender, said (s)he was “against Trump, all of the s**t he’s that he’s doing right now, and just like everything Project [20]25 related.”
(S)he said that “people’s ignorance” was responsible for Kamala Harris losing the 2024 presidential election.
An elderly man said he was at the march to protest deporting illegal immigrants. He rhetorically asked, “Who’s going to pick the vegetables?”
“Fruit, vegetables, you take the immigrants and you deport them, who’s going to do it, a bunch of white people? I don’t think so,” the man said.
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