'Be Loud. Stay Peaceful': Anti-Trump 'Movement 50501' Protests Take P​lace Nationwide

"We the people reject Project 2025."

That was one of the rallying cries of demonstrations that took place at state capitols and other locations across the United States on Wednesday. The protests are a part of "Movement 50501," which describes itself as "a decentralized rapid response to the anti-democratic, destructive, and, in many cases, illegal actions being undertaken by the Trump administration."

According to the Associated Press, protests took place in numerous cities, including Philadelphia; Lansing, Michigan; Columbus, Ohio; Austin, Texas; Jefferson, Missouri, and elsewhere.

"I'm appalled by democracy's changes in the last, well, specifically two weeks—but it started a long time ago," Margaret Wilmeth of Columbus told the AP. "So I'm just trying to put a presence into resistance."

"50501" stands for the call to have 50 protests in 50 states on one day. Materials created for Movement 50501 list various goals for the protests, including opposing executive overreach and the "purging" of civil servants, as well as decrying Project 2025—a hard-right policy blueprint from the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

On the first day of his second term in office, Trump signed a slew of executive orders declaring a national emergency at the southern border, going after birthright citizenship, implementing a 90-day pause on foreign aid, and more. In the past few weeks, billionaire Elon Musk and his representatives at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency have carried out a broadside against multiple federal agencies, exerting leverage over them with the aim of carrying out deep cuts to spending and staff.

People hold signs during a protest against U.S. President Donald Trump and his policies in New York on February 5, 2025, as part of the 50501 Movement. (Photo: Leonardo Munoz / AFP)

Compared to the large anti-Trump demonstrations that characterized Trump's arrival to the White House 2017, there have been fewer mass in-person actions this time around—though protest actions have taken place, such as businesses shuttering in observance of "a day without immigrants" on Monday and a rally in Los Angeles on Sunday over Trump's anti-immigrant agenda.

On the 50501 movement's Reddit page, a user called "honeydoulemon," who identified themselves as a moderator on the movement's Reddit and Discord pages, wrote early Wednesday that 67 actions had been planned. "We are not an organization. We are a true, blue grassroots movement made up of tens of thousands of Americans—volunteers who passionately believed in saving our democracy," wrote honeydoulemon.

"Be loud. Stay peaceful," they added.

The movement is supported by the group The Political Revolution, an organization of volunteers that grew out of the Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) campaign, according to the group's website.

"To those concerned with legitimacy, this movement has been organized over the past ten days by average Americans just like you. While we wish we had more time to gather resources and the support of established groups, the situation in our country requires a fast response, and we have worked tirelessly to make our voices heard," wrote The Political Revolution in a statement Wednesday.

This article was updated on Wednesday evening to include new links, new photos, and reporting from The Associated Press. The headline was also updated.