Hands Off Protest

                                                                            (Photo from AP News Report)

Quick note before we begin our Neighborhood Progressive dinner that starts at 5:00 PM.

I drove Joe to Plymouth, about 35 minutes from us toward Minneapolis, so he could attend the Hands Off Protest. After dropping him off at the protest site—where there were already a lot of people, even though it was about 15 minutes before the official start time—I managed to find a parking spot just half a block away. I spent some time just watching the crowd build, reading posters, and soaking in the atmosphere.

Some of the signs that stood out included:

• "Dump Trump"

• "8647"

• "Deport Musk"

• "Hands Off Social Security"

• "I want a future for my children"

I had the chance to chat with a few people as they made their way back from the protest site. Their estimate was that a couple thousand people had shown up. Joe mentioned that most of the crowd seemed to be around our age or had brought their kids with them—families, really. He didn’t see many teens or people in their twenties, so we figured the college crowd probably flocked to the protest in Saint Paul instead.

Joe also shared some powerful stories from the event. One man, a Vietnam War veteran, expressed his anger at how 47 treats veterans. People voiced concerns about social security, ICE roundups, and violations of due process laws. A few even mentioned that this wasn’t their first protest—some of them had been active during the Vietnam War protests.

As the protest carried on, there were many cars that beeped their horns in support as they drove by. The whole event was peaceful—no one bothered the protesters at all.

From about a block away, I could see people arriving with American flags and more posters, all smiles and full of energy. There were even a few people using walkers, and I couldn’t help but admire their dedication.

By 4:00 pm Central Time today, reports showed that 3.1 million people had attended protests, and that was even before some of the larger ones had begun.

Great job, Americans! It’s a powerful reminder of the strength of collective action.