Senior citizens and students, anarchists and elected leaders, Democrats, Republicans, union and religious leaders marched down Washington Street in Phoenix, carrying with them pithy signs and motivated by their outrage over the actions of President Donald Trump.
Approximately 3,000 people gathered at the state Capitol Thursday morning to march to the Sandra Day O’Connor U.S. Courthouse for a May Day protest, one of around 1,000 similar rallies planned across the country.
They showed up to demand an end to the economic chaos spurred by Trump’s tariffs, to call for workers’ rights, advocate for a stop to deportation without due process and request respect for LGBTQ rights.
They marched to protest the attempts to erase Black, Native and Latino history from schools, government archives and museums, and to call for affordable housing, funding for public schools and access to quality health care.
“Escucha, escucha, estamos en la lucha!” (Listen, listen, we are in the fight!) protestors shouted in Spanish.
The protest against the Trump administration’s executive overreach, flouting of court orders and disregard for the U.S. Constitution, was organized by former state Sen. Raquel Teran, local labor unions and advocacy groups.
Sheena Newkirk, 48, of Scottsdale, said that she was marching because she feels that the civil rights of Americans are at risk. Newkirk, who is Black, said that her ancestors fought for civil rights and freedoms and she doesn’t want to see the country regress.
“We fought for this, and we are not going to lose it or have it dismantled by a bunch of oligarchs and racist people who feel as though they want to go back in time,” she said.
The erasure of Black history from government websites, museums and schools in the name of banning diversity, equity and inclusion is especially concerning to Newkirk.
“You can’t have history in American culture without Black history,” she said.
Fred Yamashita, the executive director of Arizona AFL-CIO, called for marchers to remember those who died during a peaceful protest at Haymarket Square in Chicago on May 4, 1886. The protest, aimed at securing an 8-hour work day, later became a symbol for the fight for workers’ rights.
“Their call to action still echoes with all of us today, because so many of the rights and benefits that workers and unions have fought and died for over the years have been clawed back and stripped away,” Yamashita said.
Marisa Mata, 30, said she showed up to protest on behalf of immigrant workers — especially those who came into the country illegally. Many of her family and friends who are immigrants literally built some of the structures that she marched past on Thursday, she said.
Some of her friends are young people who came to the U.S. without proper documentation, but who rise at 4 a.m. to work physically demanding construction jobs, she explained.
“They do the hardest jobs and they get paid the least, they have no benefits and they have no hopes of retirement, and they pay their taxes because they’re hoping and praying that, one day, there will be immigration reform and they’ll be able to get all their papers together,” Mata said.
Patrick McCarthy, a conservative and a registered Republican voter who lives in Waddell, said he was at the protest “to fight fascism.”
“We came out to ask for a government for the people instead of a government for the oligarchs,” he said.
Lisa McCarthy, an independent voter who is married to Patrick, said that her grandfather fought facism in World War II and would be heartbroken to see the state of the country today.
“Human rights are human rights are human rights are human rights, and our Constitution means something,” she said. “So, regardless of what you think of religiously or personally, our Constitution should matter if you call yourself an American.”
Patrick McCarthy said that they decided it was imperative to protest on behalf of those who can’t for fear that they’ll be arrested and possibly deported.
“The people who are MAGA aren’t conservative Republicans,” Patrick McCarthy said, instead describing them as Christian nationalists and white supremacists. “Trump’s not a conservative Republican. These are people who are pushing a narrative of hate, of division, of fascism, plain and simple.”
CJ Kennedy, an 80-year-old Anthem resident, said she was concerned about possible cuts to Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security benefits, as well as the erosion of voting rights and the right to free speech.
“Everything is under attack right now and (if it goes away) will we be able to get it back?” Kennedy asked.
Newkirk said that, even though it was encouraging to see so many people protesting, she’s still floored at how many people continue to support the Trump administration, especially after he began deporting U.S. citizens and immigrants who have legal status.
“It’s a trickle down effect,” she said. “Eventually, you’re gonna f*** around and find out that everybody is in the same boat and nobody is exempt.”
Arizona Mirror is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arizona Mirror maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jim Small for questions: info@azmirror.com.
