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More than a thousand demonstrators marched in Mountain View on Saturday, joining a nationwide movement protesting the Trump administration and its federal spending cuts.
The “Hands Off!” event – reportedly held in more than 1,300 cities across the country – drew a massive crowd to Mountain View and other parts of the Peninsula on April 5, making it the biggest day of collective action since President Donald Trump took office.
The Mountain View event was held by Together We Will Palo Alto Mountain View, a political action network founded by IdaRose Sylvester, a community advocate who has organized many demonstrations since the first Trump administration.
“This is by far the biggest I’ve done,” Sylvester said, estimating that about 3,000 people attended the Mountain View event.
Protesters marched along El Camino Real from San Antonio Road to Grant Road, holding signs denouncing the Trump administration’s cuts to federal programs, as well as its policies on immigration, LGBTQ+ rights, racial equity and a number of other issues.
The march started at 11 a.m. and protesters made their way to Gateway Park a little before noon, joining more people who had convened at the corners of El Camino Real and Castro Street – an area that has long served as a site for local protests.
“This is what democracy looks like!” people chanted as vehicles honked their support up and down El Camino Real.
Demonstrators expressed an overarching anti-Trump message while also voicing opposition to Elon Musk, who has been put in charge of the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, an agency tasked with slashing federal spending.
“People have turned out for different reasons, but we all are protesting what is happening,” said Sally Lieber, a longtime activist and an event organizer. “Our elected officials need to listen, stand up and speak out,” she said.
The “hands off” message resonated with marchers who decried the Trump administration’s cuts to health care, science, education and the environment and what they described as assaults to democracy.
“I despise what’s happening,” said Francesco Lacapra, a Sunnyvale resident who attended the rally with his 9-year-old granddaughter. “The situation is so far from my experience,” he said.
Lacapra first came to the U.S. as a foreign exchange student in 1966. “America is the love of my life, but now look at what’s happening. It’s not right,” he said.
Protesters also railed against the recent imposition of tariffs on foreign goods, which many economists say will raise prices for American consumers.
“We need a scalpel and not a sledgehammer for reform,” said Antone Jain, a Campbell resident.
A few demonstrators held upside-down flags, expressing their outrage with the current regime while others took a different approach, displaying messages of unity and peace on their handmade placards.
Deb Stoddard, a Sunnyvale resident, said she came to the rally to protest Trump’s policies. “We have an ethical, moral problem in the country,” Stoddard said, adding that she was heartened to see so many people at the event.
Lenny Siegel, a long-time community activist and event organizer, also remarked on the large turnout. “The ‘flooding the zone’ strategy has created more opposition,” Siegel said, referring to the Trump administration’s plan to overwhelm opponents with an onslaught of initiatives.
“Now more people are showing up,” he said.
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