“Free America” protests against President Donald Trump and his policies are taking place across the country over the Fourth of July weekend, ranging from backyard barbecues to large rallies.
“We want for folks to be celebrating not the America that we have, but a vision that we could have for what it would look like for America truly be free,” Tamika Middleton, managing director of Women’s March, told Newsweek.
Newsweek has contacted the White House for comment via email.
The Context
Women’s March, which launched in the wake of Trump’s 2016 election victory, is behind “Free America Weekend.” The group is urging Americans to join or host events in their communities to protest the Trump administration’s policies and actions.
The events are the latest nationwide protests against the Trump administration, including “No Kings” protests on June 14, when millions rallied in cities across the country while a military parade rolled through Washington, D.C., to celebrate the Army’s 250th anniversary, coinciding with Trump’s 79th birthday.
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What To Know
Middleton said events of varying sizes are planned in all 50 states this weekend. Almost 300 events are set to take place, according to the Women’s March website.
Smaller gatherings include one at a naturalization ceremony in support of immigrants, Middleton said, and a banner drop protesting the cuts to Medicaid in the president’s sweeping tax breaks and spending cuts package, which was passed by the House on Thursday and is heading to the president’s desk.
Larger events are planned in some cities, including a rally in Los Angeles, where immigration raids have led to some Fourth of July celebrations being canceled or postponed.
Middleton said the events are aimed to be joyful.
“Because what we do know is that part of what this administration is doing is trying to bring people to despair, to the point they will not fight back,” she said.
“One of the things they’re trying to do is take themselves so seriously and establish themselves as this force that cannot be reckoned with. And we want to remind people that the joy and the power is in each other, that there is hope and that we have to keep fighting for each other and with each other.”
What People Are Saying
Middleton also told Newsweek: “What we’re hoping that people will do is to look at what the Fourth of July represents and ask themselves if our country lives into that for everyone in their communities. And if it doesn’t, what does it require to make sure that it does?
The Women’s March website says: “They want us scared, divided, and alone. They don’t want us to dream about freedom. But that’s exactly what we have to do.
This Fourth of July, we will be in the streets with songs of freedom and joy. The dream of American freedom belongs to all of us, and we will not stop in our pursuit of its promise, now or ever.”
President Donald Trump said earlier this month that any protesters at the military parade on June 14 would “be met with very big force.”
He said: “I haven’t even heard about a protest, but you know, this is people that hate our country, but they will be met with very heavy force.”
What’s Next
“Free America” events are scheduled to take place across the country over the holiday weekend.
Then, “Good Trouble Lives On” demonstrations are planned in honor of the late civil rights icon and Congressman John Lewis on July 17, the anniversary of his death.
Organizers say it will be “a national day of nonviolent action to respond to the attacks posed on our civil and human rights by the Trump administration and to remind them that in America, the power lies with the people.”
