By Megan Sayles
AFRO Staff Writer
msayles@afro.com
On a chilly Wednesday afternoon, just steps away from the Maryland State House in Annapolis, dozens of protestors gathered to denounce the actions of the 47th president and his administration during his first weeks in office. The peaceful demonstration on Feb. 5 was part of a national movement, called “50501,” signifying 50 protests across all 50 states on one day.
It follows a frenzy of executive measures by the 47th president of the United States. They include dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion efforts across federal agencies; seeking to end birthright citizenship; freezing federal grants and loans; withdrawing from the World Health Organization (WHO) and moving to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
“Donald Trump is organized this time around. In two weeks, he has dismantled critical components of our government that Americans and the world depend on. He will continue to pull the rug out from under us,” said Kelly Schiaffino, an organizer of Maryland’s 50501 protest. “We need to show up for one another. Our love for one another is one of the few tools we have left.”
The grassroots protests across the nation arose out of conversations on social media platforms, like Reddit, Discord, Bluesky and Signal. They were organized to fight back against the 47th president’s implementation of Project 2025, a conservative agenda he claims he’s never read.
Despite his attempts to distance himself from the plan on the campaign trail, many of his early actions have aligned with the project. It calls for things like the elimination of the Department of Education, the mass deportation of undocumented immigrants and placing key federal agencies, such as the Department of Justice (DOJ), under direct presidential control.
Trump has already intensified Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, fired DOJ officials who were involved in criminal investigations against him and expressed his interest in an executive order that would initiate the Education Department’s abolishment.
Protestors also rebuked the 47th president’s apparent partnership with tech billionaire Elon Musk, who is the head of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). In his position, Musk has led the shuttering of USAID, America’s leading humanitarian aid agency, and accessed classified information and sensitive data from USAID and the Treasury Department’s payment system.
“The recent unholy alliance between former and current President Donald Trump and the entrepreneur Elon Musk poses a significant threat to the very foundation of our democracy,” said William Rowel, former senior adviser to the mayor of Annapolis. “What they are attempting to do is decentralize our power while centralizing the power in their own hands. We the people cannot stand for that.”
Rowel told the AFRO he had no choice but to speak at the rally and encouraged others to do the same.
“I think that everyone needs to stop what they’re doing, protest, show up, speak out and just be in solidarity with those who are being attacked, whether it’s government workers, our transgender community or immigrants— who are not ‘illegal aliens’ but people who are seeking a better quality of life,” said Rowel. “We need to stand up for them.”
He said he’s been dismayed, saddened and even frightened by the recent steps of the 47th president. He believes the volume and speed of the executive actions are meant to paralyze the American people.
“We can either flee, freeze, or we can act. I choose to act. It really is an attack on those who are relatively powerless in our social system,” said Rowel. “We need to recognize that and be sure we’re standing up for them.”
Brothers Nick and Jay Hershberger learned the power of protesting from their grandmother, who they said has been organizing all of her life. Nick Hershberger, 18, said he was there to fight against the 47th president’s attempts to consolidate power.
“Our founding fathers didn’t make this country for a dictator to run,” said Nick Hershberger. We’re out here to stop that from happening and to keep the Constitution.”
Jay Hershberger attended for more personal reasons.
“There’s a lot of people out here to support gay rights, Black rights and just to keep our democracy a democracy,” said Jay Hershberger. “The main reason I came out here today was to support as a gay, Black male. It’s difficult to bring out how I feel these days because I’m afraid that I’m going to be looked at differently for my beliefs.”
Mary Ackenbruck, another protestor, took to the microphone to encourage demonstrators to speak truth to power. She explained that though people may start advocacy efforts with good intentions, they may run out of steam and cease their organizing.
“A lot of that ends the minute you close your Facebook posts, the minute you pat yourself on the back and say, ‘Oh, I’m not that kind of White person. I didn’t vote for that man,’ and the minute you don’t confront your friends from high school,” said Ackenbruck.
She warned against White people being complacent in the struggles of other marginalized groups, and she urged people to stand up as allies for communities who have been the most oppressed.
“You say you want change. You say that man doesn’t represent us. Well then guess what? You have to get uncomfortable,” said Ackenbruck. “This isn’t about ‘kumbaya’ moments with the other well-meaning White people. You have to go out and be the change.”
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