Something really important is happening as people from all over the country join with people from DC to launch a relentless, determined nonviolent protest in DC—to call forth the millions rising up nonviolently to force the Trump fascist regime from power. As people march side-by-side, they are finding themselves next to people with different ideas about the problem, with different views on what this country, and what humanity, needs. But all are brought together with the singular demand: TRUMP MUST GO NOW! 

Here are excerpts from interviews volunteers with revcom.us have done with some of these people over the first five days of the Trump Out Now! movement launched in DC on November 5.

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Black woman in her 20s who works for an environmental advocacy organization, who saw the Saturday march in Columbia Heights:

“You know, like this man is talking about wanting to be a forever president pretty much. When I heard that, I knew something wasn't right. And the fact that it was possible to get him into office was crazy. We have to make sure that we stop this before that happens. Because if they've allowed him to do as much as he has so far, and it hasn't even been a full year, I'm worried that they actually will allow that. And that's like just even changing the Constitution in a way that has never been touched. That's not okay.”

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White woman in her 50s or 60s, a Handmaid Army organizer:

“In my circle, it's definitely… fascism is definitely a word that we're using. We believe it's happening. The other side doesn't think that it's fascism, which is really weird to me. I think that the talk amongst us activists who don't live in this area, we're talking more and more about getting to DC and having a permanent presence. So, those of us that are leaders back in our home states, we're trying to encourage more people to come to Washington, DC and to be that presence, because this is the seat of where everything happens. And those protests in our communities are great, but we all need to be here, and we need to focus our concentration in Washington, DC…. I just want more people to get involved in protesting. Because we've got to get this guy out of the office.”

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White man, in his 40s, a self-described “moderate left of center Democrat” who has been part of the protests since November 5:

“I'm here because our constitutional system is getting systematically undermined in violation of every value this country is intended to stand for… I think you guys are exactly right. We don't have time. The political system is failing and being torn apart as we speak. There has to be mass resistance because this is way beyond politics. This really is the rise of authoritarianism, and that doesn't get beaten just by voting. That gets beaten by the people standing up and just saying no, this is unacceptable, not in this country… Find the time. This is important. This is an emergency. It's no exaggeration to say that the survival of the country is at stake. So find the time. And what really matters is showing up… There's a wide range of ideologies here. As long as you're opposed to what Trump is doing to our country, that's good enough. Showing up is what matters… I'm just a moderate left-of-center Democrat, which I brought up because ordinarily I wouldn't be out here with people calling themselves revcoms. I respect your beliefs, but we're not on the same page. But we agree on the one important thing right now. We need to stop authoritarianism because it would be quite a luxury for you and I to be able to disagree. Right? Yes. Oh, man. Right now, I don't care that you're to my left. I don't care even a little bit. We need to stop this.”

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White woman in her 40s or 50s from a small Maryland city near DC, at the Friday protest in front of the Supreme Court:

“I was at a protest right after the National Guard came to DC. It was a protest and a march. It started in DuPont Circle. All of the speakers [from Refuse Fascism] that day really spoke to the myriad of issues that are confronting us that feel so overwhelming. And they were listing them in such a coherent and actionable way… I was out of town and came back on the 4th to make sure I was here on the 5th. And I told my employer, I have to have the day off. I didn't ask, I told them. And they were happy to give me the day off. So I was here all day with my mom, who protested as a hippie in the ’60s. We walked five miles that day, and it was very inspiring… People can say you shouldn't make comparisons to Hitler, but it is 100 percent a comparison to Hitler, right? This is how he did it. He made people think Jews were not human, that gypsies were not, that Roma were not human, that homosexuals were not human, that socialists were not human. And then the people just kind of turn away, and we can't let that happen. We absolutely can't let that happen.… The people who are looking away, the people who are turning away, they need to pay attention and understand that they're losing their own humanity every day. Because if they do not defend human beings who are not being given food, water, a place to sleep, and their medication, that we need a court order to enforce that in Chicago, that we have somebody in charge of ICE who says, if you don't want to be tear gassed, don't protest, people need to pay attention.”

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A white and Black couple in their 20s who traveled from Pennsylvania to be in DC since November 5, at the Friday protest in front of the Supreme Court:

“We see more love than hate. And so when we see those little pockets of hate and how dark they are, we have to stand for love and humanity and solidarity. So that's why we have to be here… [The fascists] just gave medals posthumously to the soldiers who massacred the people at Wounded Knee. That is rewriting history. That's what I'm terrified about is being mowed over in history. Not as a person as me but for all of us that care about humanity. And that is not something that I will abide by. Fuck that. Forgive my French. Fuck that. We're not rewriting history… I think it's important to remember because so many people showed up on No Kings Day, right, because it was kind of amorphous. We didn't have a demand. We were just like, we don't want any kings. But what's our demand? How do we want this to happen? We want Trump out of power here, and this is what this movement is about.”

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Several youth out of a multinational group of George Washington University students who saw the march go by on Thursday and had joined in, then joined the Friday protest at the Supreme Court with handmade signs:

Student 1: “Yeah. I would say we have never had a president with so much disrespect for the people in this country. We have never been under such extreme circumstances under our government, and we need to, everyone needs to get on the streets and resist and make their voices heard and say that we're not okay with this anymore because it's not acceptable. Donald Trump was elected one year ago, and his entire time in office has been a nightmare. People here in DC and in my hometown are getting snatched off the streets. It's not acceptable anymore, and we all need to come together and say that it's not acceptable because it can't go on like this… I would just say if you're exhausted of hearing about things, imagine how exhausted the immigrants are, the queer people are, the Black people are, the Latino people are. Imagine how tired everybody else is. Things need to change.”

Student 2: “I think that most people who did not show up today are kind of in that mindset of, I'm not affected by this. But at the end of the day, we see more and more rights being stripped from people of all demographics, and who knows what's next? Like, your rights are on the chopping block as well. Everyone needs to stand up against what is being said and done by the government and this administration.”

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White woman in her 30s who came to the Friday protest in front of the Supreme Court:

“I think the sooner he is gone, the sooner we can get back to having a nation that accepts everyone and where everyone can live freely and have the money they need to survive and the food they need to survive and not have people ripped from their homes from ICE agents. And I think that that needs to happen very soon, and I hope that it does, and I personally will keep coming to these events and keep trying to get other people to come because this is something that I care a lot about and I know a lot of people that I'm close to who are being affected by these things right now. So, yeah, I agree with what [Refuse Fascism] is doing, and I probably will continue to come and support them.”

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Trans person in their 20s, at the protest in front of the Supreme Court:

“I'm here because I'm a trans person who identifies also within and have lived many different experiences within the LGBTQ community. And I believe in human rights. And I believe that what's happening is they take things and politicize them. And there seems to be a separation between turning things into a political weapon versus just basic humanity and the rights to basic humanity. For everybody that had the ability to prosper and live the life that they deserve and that America promises within the Constitution.”

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Black woman in her 40s, at the Thursday march from George Washington University to Georgetown:

“The Supreme Court's not going to come and rescue us. That's true. The court systems are not going to rescue us. The Congress people on Hill are not going to rescue us. It's up to us. This is the moment.”

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White woman in her 20s who came from Colorado for November 5 and to stay for some days, at the march from George Washington University:

“As far as people who haven't come out, I know that it's really inconvenient. I had to take time off work, you know, and my mom had to take time off and my aunt, she came out here too. But I think if you understand what's going on and you see something that's unjust and it's really important, then, you know, sometimes that has to come above other things. That is privilege to some extent, right? Being able to like get up and leave or take time off and things like that. But if you're able to do that, you know, standing up for what you believe in, and we can only do this if we have numbers.”

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Middle-aged woman from Massachusetts who came with her daughter, at the Saturday march in Columbia Heights: 

“I came because I was looking for protests in DC for the anniversary of the election, and found the Refuse Fascism one. One of the things I really noticed about Refuse Fascism is how inclusive it is. And it even made me a little uncomfortable, like there are people who have very different views, some of which are more out there than I have. But I loved how Refuse Fascism's arms are just enormous and inclusive, and allowing for all these different voices and opinions to be shared. Because we all agree that this particular administration… it's a dismantling of all the things that we hold sacred and dear of all the laws and rules and beliefs. And a complete disregard for the incredible work that has been done to build this country into a place where people feel safe and comfortable and able to speak and participate.”

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DC resident, at the march in Columbia Heights:

“I’ve been living in DC for five years. But I'm also the child of immigrants. I feel that it is very necessary and powerful for me to be here seeing that I'm a DC resident and people come from all over the country, but I live in the belly of the beast so I have no choice but to be here... What has really warmed my heart is there have been so many people I have met. I've been here since day one, day two, three, four, that have been here from all over the country. To expand this, I think that we need to just keep posting about it every day and showing people that we are relentless and they also need to get on board.”

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Venezuelan immigrant who joined the march in Columbia Heights:

(on hearing the plan is to bring people to DC and stay until Trump is driven out of office) “I love that. I hope we can accomplish that. I hope so. He needs to go. There's too many reasons he has to go. The immigrants. I am an immigrant, we have been part of the community since the country was founded. That is my number one concern. But also the graft and the fact that he is taking planes from other countries, the corruption. It has to stop… I have lived in a fascist country, Venezuela. So I know how it starts and I know how it ends, and it doesn't end well. This is how it starts, just like this. And people ignoring it and applauding it.”

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Spanish-speaking woman who joined the march in Columbia Heights for some blocks:

“There are days when ICE is here that I don’t go to work and don’t go outside. Most of the Latinos here are too scared to come outside and join this march.”

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Man from Fresno, California, at the November 5 rally and march:

“What inspired me to come? Well, the SNAP benefits thing is what finally did it. When you start starving people and using them as leverage that’s gone too far. The ICE raids, and attacking people out of the blue. You’ve got farmers who can't pick their crops. They're losing their crops because there's no workers and they are raiding the fields.

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Social worker from Seattle, at the November 5 rally and march:

“The reason why I'm here is because I'm here for the poor people of the United States. I don't want all of the children to lose health care and food. I stand with the poor families. I don't think that our hard-earned tax dollars should go to Gaza and billionaires and oligarchs. I don't think that our government should be sold out to other foreign governments. I don't think—I don’t want corruption in the White House. I'm here for everyone's civil rights. I believe that we need to preserve the Constitution of the United States of America and it's currently being dismantled and we need to stop this rise in power before it consolidates into a full fascist regime, because when it does everyone is in danger. When the least of us is attacked it will affect us all and we must be held accountable for what happens to the least of us that's why I’m here…. We can't live with this. We need this out now, and I think if people continue to flood here, I think we have a chance of getting them out. That is what has worked in history with other regimes, and I believe this can work.”