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Needed: 9.1 million Americans [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-04-14
Needed: 9.1 million Americans
The river of protest is growing. It began as a small creek, a trickle of discontent—but it has been steadily swelling as one tributary after another flows into it. No one is dumping tea into the water—so it’s not a Tea Party, although that movement was undeniably effective. But there is power here, and it is becoming palpable.
Some feared the resistance had vanished. Yet, as the following notable protests illustrate, the river is not only flowing—it is rising.
January 20, 2025 – Inauguration Day Protests: Organized as the “People’s March” by the Women’s March movement under the slogan “We Fight Back 2025,” this day saw over 700 coordinated protests. While it did not match the historic scale of the 2017 Women’s March—estimated at 3.3 to 5.2 million participants—it marked the start of the resistance.
February 3, 2025 – Day Withou tImmigrants: Though smaller in size, this protest carried symbolic weight drawing attention to the essential contributions of immigrants to American society and the economy. Demonstrations took place in Colorado, Utah, Tennessee, Oregon, Texas, Washington, D.C., and other locations.
February 5, 2025 – 50501 Protests: Titled “50 protests, 50 states, one day,” this grassroots mobilization united demonstrators nationwide in opposition to President Trump’s policies. The group 50501 emerged as a new force, tapping into a widespread desire for organized action despite early skepticism.
February 17, 2025 – Not My Presidents Day: Also led by 50501, this protest was centered in Washington, D.C., with satellite events in other cities. Though smaller than the February 5 protests, it demonstrated continued momentum and commitment.
February 28, 2025 – Economic Blackout: A 24-hour consumer spending boycott spearheaded by People’s Union USA. Its full economic impact remains unclear, but it could become the first of many protests leveraging financial pressure.
March 4, 2025 – March Fourth for Democracy: Rallies held across several states to affirm democratic values and push back against authoritarian drift.
March 7, 2025 – Stand Up for Science: In response to attacks on science and research, this protest centered on the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., where approximately 2,000 people gathered. Additional rallies occurred in over 30 cities nationwide and internationally.
March 8, 2025 – International Women’s Day: These protests were international in scope, with numerous U.S. events advocatingf or women’s rights, equality, and justice.
March 29, 2025, Tesla Takedowns: Initiated on February 15, 2025, these weekly protests culminated in late March, with demonstrations at over 500 Tesla locations worldwide, including 277 in the U.S. See
https://theintercept.com/2025/04/13/elon-musk-tesla-takedown-protests/for a summary of these takedowns. Also see
https://www.teslatakedown.com/. With Tesla stock down 33% and U.S. sales dropping over 10% in the first quarter of 2025, the protests have had a measurable economic impact. U.S.-based EV competitors, by contrast, saw sales rise 16% or more. (Source:
https://www.thestreet.com/investing/stocks/tesla-stock-analyst-has-one-word-reaction-to-recent-sell-off-shares-surge)
April 5, 2025 – Hands Off Protests: A powerful show of unity, this nationwide protest brought together over 150 grassroots organizations, resulting in demonstrations at more than 1,400 locations with an estimated 3 million participants.
It took 76 days, but the resistance has finally produced a protest movement approaching the magnitude of the 2017 Women’s March. And this is only the visible surface. Thousands of smaller protests have occurred—at federal agencies, Social Security offices, post offices, state capitols, ICE detention centers, town halls (with often absent Republican members of Congress), and at rallies led by Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, with over 35,000 attendees in some cities. These acts of defiance—big and small—are building something bigger.
On March 4, 2025, Yale professor Timothy Snyder, author of “On Tyranny” and “On Freedom,” joined a Zoom event with Red, Wine, and Blue, a sisterhood of women opposing extremism. He urged participants to normalize protest: “If you protest now, you will be able to protest later.” In other words, protest is not just a tool—it’s a safeguard. (Source:
https://www.bookclubfriends.com/2025/03/05/timothy-snyder-discusses-urgent-threats-of-authoritarianism-and-what-can-be-done-to-resist-it/)
To normalize protest, it must become a visible, regular, and accepted expression of democratic will. It cannot be dismissed as something only extremists do, nor viewed as shameful ordisruptive. Protests, when sustained, become woven into the fabric of civic life. They are how free societies hold the line against authoritarianism.
Why protest?
1 Protests create mass movements by transforming private frustration into collective action.
2 Protests break the silence. In times of fear and political uncertainty, they make dissent public and legitimate.
3 Protests shift the narrative. Without them, Trump dominates the conversation. Silence equals agreement. Protest makes disagreement impossible to ignore.
4 Protests seize attention. They generate media coverage, spark social media engagement, and fuel conversations that reach persuadable audiences.
5 Protests create urgency. They declare, “This matters—now.” Larger protests amplify that message.
6 Protests rally the silent majority. When protests are visible and repeated, they draw in those who agree but haven’t yet acted—changing polls, donations, and votes.
7 Protests sow doubt in the opposition. They expose internal fractures, erode morale, and disrupt the illusion of unified support.
8 Protests are part of a broader strategy. They work in tandem with boycotts, strikes, lobbying, lawsuits, fundraising, and direct outreach to officials.
Political scientist Erica Chenoweth, author of “Why Civil Resistance Works,” with co-author Maria Stephan, tracks U.S. protest activity. In February 2017, Trump’s first term, there were 937 protests. In February 2025, in response to Trump’s second term, that number more than doubled to 2,085. (Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/mar/28/protest-research-trump-musk) Both the number of protests and the size of protests matter—but size is critical.
Chenoweth’s research on 323 violent and nonviolent campaigns from 1900 to 2006 revealed a striking threshold: when 3.5% of a population engages in sustained protest, nonviolent movements always succeed—always. Source:
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190513-it-only-takes-35-of-people-to-change-the-world) In the U.S., with 261 million adults, we need 9.1 million active protestors. Like the hundredth monkey, that is the tipping point.
We’re not there yet—but the current surge in protest signals momentum. The river is rising.
The power of protest lies not just in the moment—but in the movement. These events, large and small, local and national, are forging a culture of civic resistance. They are not fringe outbursts. They are the beating heart of democracy.
Each voice raised, each sign held, and each step marched cannot be ignored. The movement against Trump is growing stronger every day. And when 9.1 million Americans stand together, history shows the tide will turn.
Day 85: days left to January 20, 2029:1,376 days
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