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Anti-Trump protests had a weak showing during the 47th president’s inauguration Monday, with only about 300 attending a demonstration in Washington, D.C.
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About 250 protestors are gathered in Washington D.C. in 20 degree weather for the inauguration @FreeBeacon pic.twitter.com/h9PBYymzLN
— Jessica Costescu (@JessicaCostescu) January 20, 2025
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Demonstrations were expected to be smaller and tamer than the unrest during President Donald Trump’s first inauguration in 2017, when nearly 200 agitators were charged for their roles in violent protests. Those predictions preceded Monday’s frigid forecast, which may have helped decrease attendance.
The low turnout at the event, organized by the Party for Socialism and Liberation along with several anti-Israel groups, continues a trend of declining Trump resistance. Organizers estimated that this year’s Women’s March, rebranded as the People’s March, would draw 50,000 protesters. It almost certainly drew fewer attendees—the Washington Post reported that “thousands marched” without disclosing a more precise figure. The first Women’s March attracted more than a million people in 2017.
There were still marks of radicalism on Monday, such as a fake guillotine with red paint on the faux blade, a giant head of Trump stylized as a demon, and a speech that called for reparations for migrants. Several protesters wore red caps that looked like MAGA hats but read “Made You Look Allahu Akbar.”
Cardboard head of a demonic Trump pic.twitter.com/NeylpXfG9z
— Jessica Costescu (@JessicaCostescu) January 20, 2025
“Fight Trump’s Agenda” pic.twitter.com/kokBO62MBy
— Jessica Costescu (@JessicaCostescu) January 20, 2025
“After all the harm the U.S. imperialists has [sic] caused in our countries, migrants not only deserve the right to come and stay here but also to demand reparations for all they’ve damaged,” one speaker said to cheers.
Another boasted that former president Joe Biden’s “alienation from the Democratic Party was because of our people in the streets.”
“Remember, when a new puppet enters the White House, the game is the same,” she said.
As the demonstrators began to march down 16th Street toward the White House, protesters chanted, “Free Palestine” and “Israel, you can’t hide.” One stopped to wave a Palestinian flag in front of a Jewish community center.
Protestor stopped in front the DC Jewish Community Center to wave his Palestinian flag pic.twitter.com/0DmHlEkKbB
— Jessica Costescu (@JessicaCostescu) January 20, 2025
One banner read “Luigi before fascists”—an apparent reference to Luigi Mangione, the man accused of assassinating UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. When demonstrators reached Dupont Circle, they chanted, “One solution, revolution.”
