“More than billionaires” protests target billionaires who will help implement Trump’s policies
Labor Day protests begin in DC with national rallies planned
A gathering of thousands of people in Washington, D.C. protests union destruction and inequality ahead of Labor Day weekend.
Hundreds of thousands of Americans are expected to skip barbecues and spend Labor Day protesting President Donald Trump and the billionaires who support him.
“A lot of people are thrilled to see a lot of people really raise the heat of the administration and billionaires who are actually pushing the agenda, especially as we’re seeing an increase in attacks on the community.”
Over 1,000 “billionaires” events are planned nationwide on Labor Day and surrounding days.
The event, which takes place in cities large and small in almost every state, is designed to build on the momentum of other massive protests, including No Kings Day in June and Good Troubles in July. They are led by labor organisations, including the AFL-CIO, as well as other advocacy groups such as Mayday Strong, Public Citizens and Individuals.
The White House did not respond to requests for comment on the protests. Instead, he provided a quote from Vice President JD Vance about Democrats who have not voted for the GOP tax and expenditure bill, as well as an estimate from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Labor Day.
“We finally have a president who fights and delivers for American workers every day. President Trump believes that American workers are the heart and soul of our economy and national identity. That’s why he’s always defending the agenda that puts them first,” she said.
Batty, whose group focuses on racial and economic activity, said many Americans don’t see Trump’s actions that way.
The organizers said, “We are hoping for a show of great power that we are not sitting on Monday, working class people all over the country are fighting back and billionaires are ready to keep our community from smashing away,” Batty said.
Near the community
Many advocacy groups planning the Labor Day protest were also involved in the nationwide “No Kings” demonstrations on June 14th. This attracted millions of attendees at 2,100 locations for good trouble live shows at events at over 1,000 locations on July 17th, according to group estimates. Overall, since April, there have been monthly nationwide protests against the administration’s policies.
Events are expected to grow in cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago and New York, but this time there will be no flagship events. This is because organizers want activists to focus on community needs.
Following the models that model advocacy groups have been using since the spring, they will host events in as many locations as possible, rather than one or two major cities. This approach can be ignored and made possible by the public, connecting with local resources, and those who appear to conduct local advocacy.
The president of National Education Association Becky Pringle said that teachers and school support staff unions are taking part because educators feel a responsibility to speak out. The administration hurt the child, she said, In particular, the passage of the GOP tax and expenditure bill will reduce Medicare and food profits.
“We understand that we must demonstrate corruption and rejection of lawlessness and predatory policies, as all the chaos and destruction is because we take money from our children and give tax credits to already wealthy people from providing health care,” Pringle said.
Each community must decide on specific policies to protest and how and how to protest, Pringle said. She will be attending an event in Iowa and will focus on the impact of cuts on food aid and what it means for working families.
“Educators and workers across the country understand what is happening, how our rights are diminished or taken away, how power is integrated. “To be honest, we’re in a moment when we don’t stand up and fight for democracy or have it.”
Regardless of what topics activists choose to focus on, organizers feel this should be a move led by working-class people.
“At this moment, the only way forward is to choose workers who are more than billionaires every day,” she said.
Dominguez said the moment stands out as it has long brought together labor and community groups for mass protests on Labor Day.
In New York City, thousands of New Yorkers are expected to gather in front of Trump Tower and turn Fifth Avenue into a “street restaurant.”
In Des Moines, labor groups will march from the Iowa State Capitol to Union Labor Park, ending with a massive chef. In Scottsdale, Arizona, organizers are planning a complete dy-in with gravestones and cos, according to the event’s description, “billionaires and politicians are killing our community through corporate greed, school privatization and attacks on workers.”
Organizers in Madison, Wisconsin are holding Labor Festival 2025 on the Madison Labour Temple site. There are live music, food trucks, children’s events and collection drives for students from homeless families.
In Denver, activists hold rallies at the state capitol, demanding that ice move away from schools and communities.
Arkansas activists gather for a rally at Hot Springs National Park and a march in Little Rock. In Post Falls, the North Idaho Central Labor Council and Spokane Regional Labor County are hosting car shows and Labor Day picnics.
Protests targeting certain billionaires
Some of the protests and rallies target certain business officials “which really help drive an authoritarian agenda,” Batty said.
These include those and businesses who donated to Trump’s Political Action Committee, those who worked for Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or those who benefited financially from the moves they made by the Trump administration.
“We know that many of these people who actually help promote the agenda are not used to being in fact the subject of major protest,” he said.
Bhatti speaks at a Chicago event targeting Antonio Gracias, a senior Doge volunteer involved in immigration and social security policy who left the government in July. Randy Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, had recently questioned nine public pension funds that he also controlled whether his Doge was harming investments.
Other goals include AI platform Palantir Technologies Inc., Bhatti said. It received millions of dollars in government contracts to integrate government data on Americans and its co-founder billionaire Peter Thiel. Target changed Day’s policies when Trump took office. Airbnb co-founders Joe Gebbia and GOP Mega-Donor Jeff Yass.
In New York’s East Hampton, where summer homes for hundreds of millions of dollars are homes, organizers plan a “house tour” march past their homes. Organizers of the East Hampton event have called it “a direct conflict with the Olihead power center” in a news release.
Dominguez said people who are directly connected to Trump are not the only targets of protest. In Albuquerque, New Mexico, activists are protesting local developers who received a multi-million dollar tax credit to build hotels and expensive homes, Dominguez said.
Training for the future
Organizers also want to use the protests to continue training a new generation of activists, turning their eyes to the next three years and more of Trump’s term.
“We know we are in a history era where many massive protests across the country are taking place in order to really bring back the tide of authoritarianism,” Batty said. “We know it’s a marathon, not a sprint, and people need to build muscle.”
Pringle said activists are extremely intentional about building movements at all levels.
“We are against the truly wealthy people, billionaires who are exercising their power, influence and control in this government in a way that we have not witnessed at this level or at this rate,” Pringle said. “An organized people always win over organized money, but we have to organize. We have to be intentional, we have to understand our strength.”
