Protesters across the U.S. came together on Saturday, April 5, for the nationwide “Hands Off!” protests, demonstrating resistance against the actions of President Donald Trump and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) lead, Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
The Trump Administration and Musk have notably spent the first few weeks of Trump’s presidency working to “reduce waste” through mass government layoffs and the termination of contracts. There has even been an attempt to dismantle the Department of Education. A child attending a protest in Atlanta was pictured holding a banner that read "Hands off my education."
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Cities across the globe mobilized for their own Hands Off! protests, with various grassroots advocacy groups prioritizing concerns such as LGBTQ+ rights, immigrant rights, and climate activism.
One woman at the Washington D.C. rally on the National Mall was pictured holding a sign that read “Stop Destroying America.” On the West Coast, demonstrators in Los Angeles marched from Pershing Square to City Hall.
The demands of the protest, according to instructions from Hands Off!, called for an “end to the billionaire takeover” at the Trump Administration and “an end to the attacks on immigrants, trans people, and other communities.”
On the day, protesters also referenced Trump’s moves to dismantle climate action and the cutting of federal funding for certain health programs.
Addressing the subject of the mass April 5 protests, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was quoted as telling USA TODAY in a statement: “Anyone who thinks protests, lawsuits, and lawfare will deter President Trump must have been sleeping under a rock for the past several years. President Trump will not be deterred from delivering on the promises he made to make our federal government more efficient and more accountable to the hardworking American taxpayers across the country who overwhelmingly re-elected him.”
Meanwhile, in a statement issued to the Associated Press, the White House said: “President Trump’s position is clear: he will always protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for eligible beneficiaries. Meanwhile, the Democrats’ stance is giving Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare benefits to illegal aliens, which will bankrupt these programs and crush American seniors.”
Trump spent part of his Saturday golfing in Florida, and has yet to publicly address the protests himself.
TIME has reached out to the White House for comment.
Kamala Harris, the former Vice President and Trump's Democratic opponent in the 2024 presidential election, addressed the vast protests on Saturday. In a statement shared via X (formerly Twitter), she said: "Today in every state across our nation, Americans are standing up to the administration as they implement Project 2025 at full speed."
Her message continued: "Thank you for using your voices and the power of protest to stand for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid; for the Department of Education and programs like Head Start; for clean air and water; for the right to make decisions about your own body without government interference. The voices of working people will always be louder than the unelected billionaires."
Trump has always maintained he has no involvement with Project 2025.
According to a toolkit put together for those who wished to host their own version of the march, the purpose was to present a “massive, visible, national rejection of this crisis.” The protests came at a precarious time, as the U.S. stock market plummeted following Trump’s latest tariffs which he announced on April 2, a day he called “Liberation Day.”
Read More: Is Your 401(k) Affected by Trump’s Tariffs? Here’s What to Know and What You Should Do
“Whether you are mobilized by the attacks on our democracy, the slashing of jobs, the invasion of privacy, or the assault on our services—this moment is for you,” the toolkit read. “Our goal is to show that the people—the majority—are taking action to stop the corruption and power grab.”
International protests occurred in cities including London, Paris, and Stockholm. In Berlin, protesters gathered outside the U.S. embassy, with one woman pictured holding up a sign that read: “Hands off our Social Security.” This was in reference to the ongoing concerns as to what might happen to Social Security under the Trump Administration.
In London, one person held up a sign that read “Hands off Europe.” Another banner said “Greenland is not for sale,” in reference to Trump’s interest in buying Greenland from Denmark.