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Hundreds of people protested against the Trump administration Saturday and demanded economic justice in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County at the Hiram Ward Federal building in downtown Winston-Salem. Protesters cheer on the speakers during the Hands Off! protest on Saturday at the Ward Federal Building plaza. Similar events have been held across the country to protest actions taken by the Trump administration since inauguration day.
The rally, tied to hundreds of protests occurring simultaneously around the U.S. on April 5, brought out a large crowd of opponents of President Trump and the billionaire Elon Musk, who is helping to spearhead the federal government's unprecedented slash and burn attacks on a wide variety of federal agencies and government workers.
Much, if not all of the Winston-Salem rally was organized and spurred on by Indivisible, a national progressive group which led protests about abortion rights, gun violence and racial justice in the first Trump administration. Amy Taylor North (left) and Elizabeth Boynton were among the protesters during the Hands Off! protest on Saturday at the Ward Federal Building plaza. Now, the national group told the New York Times Saturday they are working to emphasize a new message: that Trump is threatening health care, social security, education, making life harder for the average American, while "benefiting his richest friends.
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Winston-Salem's Saturday event, which took place at the same time as a nearby protest in Greensboro, bore another message in addition to opposition of Trump's recent decisions: economic justice. "We are not asking for scraps, we're not begging for inclusion, we're demanding justice," said Eunice Campbell, one of the speakers at the rally. "Hands off our voices, hands off our labor, hands off our future, and hands off our economic justice!" On Saturday, the Ward federal plaza was so full through the sweltering afternoon that dozens held signs and participated in the rally while standing on the different levels of a parking deck across the street.
Rally-goers lined nearby roadways, stood, danced and shouted in the square throughout the two-hour rally. Most held signs with colorful illustrations of Trump, which called him a tyrant who is looking to destroy democracy. Other signs showed characterizations of Elon Musk, and one called for Congress to "impeach president Musk.
" The program for the event was filled with numerous speakers, a dance team and songs. Camel City United, the local Indivisible chapter for Winston-Salem, appeared to have put most of the planning effort behind Saturday's event, which they insisted in the days leading up to the rally was "not a protest" of the Trump administration. Hundreds of protesters turned out for the Hands Off! rally on Saturday at the Ward Federal Building plaza.
Similar events have been held across the country to protest actions taken by the Trump administration since inauguration day. Instead, Rudy Click, a leader with the group said the rally was instead designed to build community and inform local residents about the recent actions of the Trump administration, among another purpose to advocate for local economic justice in the city and county. Despite some confusion and frustration about the purpose of the rally within Camel City United's public Facebook group, many residents of Winston-Salem appeared at Saturday's event, as well as numerous residents of nearby Davie and Stokes Counties.
Gloria and Lisa Matthews, two Winston-Salem residents who attended the rally Saturday, said they were representing three generations of their family in protest of the Trump administration's recent actions. When asked if there were any decisions which had affected them personally, Lisa Matthews responded by saying she was more concerned for the impacts on people other than herself, which she said are under threat. "Medicaid, LGBTQ+ rights, immigration, the environment," Matthews said.
"The list goes on. I don't need it to affect me personally." Gloria Matthews, who said she was from the generation of the 1960s, added she believed the United States is returning to the era of segregation she grew up in because of the loss of civil rights protections.
Many of those who came to Saturday’s rally expressed a deep fear and anger toward the barrage of executive orders from the Trump administration which come in the form of news articles. “Everyday it’s another story,” said Janice Schmitz, a Davie County resident who heard about the rally through her local “Davie Democrats” group. The community, which Schmitz said meets at a local library every month, also protests at N.
C. Senator Ted Budd’s office among other politicians. Protesters cheer on the speakers during the Hands Off! protest on Saturday at the Ward Federal Building plaza.
Many local elected officials in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County attended Saturday’s rally, too. Winston-Salem city council persons Vivian Joyner and Scott Andree-Bowen came to the rally, in addition to Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School Board member Trevonia Brown-Gaither. Forsyth County Commissioner Shai Woodbury and N.
C. State Representative Amber Baker attended and spoke together during the rally. But instead of delivering speeches which exclusively disparaged the acts of Trump and his administration, Woodbury and Baker spoke of issues in local politics they believe desperately need public attention and support.
"In Forsyth County we are the third lowest ranking county in America for economic upward mobility," Woodbury said. Woodbury said she wanted to put a face to the statistic and referenced her nephew, who is in prison. "Because of a lack of access to mobility and opportunity, he spent his 41st birthday in jail for the rest of his life.
He went in at 21," Woodbury said of her nephew, who she also added went through Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. "That is on us," she said. "We must change that trajectory here in our county.
" A protester flies a hand made flag during the Hands Off! protest on Saturday. Woodbury, a longtime educator and former member of the school board, discussed the perpetual struggle for the local school system to obtain funding from both the N.C.
General Assembly and local county commissioners. In the most recent cycle, the county board did not grant the school district's full budget request in a majority vote but instead gave the explanation that legislators in Raleigh bore responsibility for granting most of the funding for which the system was looking. "I did vote in the minority for the 2025 budget that gave Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools the most money, go check out who voted against that," Woodbury said.
She also called out the county board’s recent majority decision against more evening meeting times, which would allow for working residents to attend the sessions. Eric Larson holds a sign among the protestors during the Hands Off! protest on Saturday. “I come to ask you to open up the meetings so I can come and participate in the process and you say ‘I’m not moved by crowds,’” said Woodbury.
“No worries, the fight is not over, because again, all power to the people.” In her speech, Baker referenced a “same kind of pressure” to the Trump administration 132 miles away from Winston-Salem in Raleigh, in the form of a N.C.
General Assembly bill to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion measures. “Don’t just talk to the Democrats,” Baker said. “We don’t have any power up there.
We only have power when you put pressure on our Republican colleagues across the aisle.” Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
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