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Labor unions and community activists gathered for mass protests on Labor Day, the latest in a series of demonstrations against the Trump administration.
On a holiday set aside to recognize and honor the contributions of American workers, hundreds and sometimes thousands turned out in rallies and political protests across the country on Sept. 1, aiming to demonstrate the power of the working class.
Large crowds turned out at rallies and marches in major cities including Boston, Chicago, Detroit, New York and others. More than a thousand "Workers Over Billionaires” themed events were planned nationwide.
The protests drew mostly modest crowds in smaller cities around the country, from Scottsdale, Arizona, to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Several of the involved organizations also helped set up the other large-scale protests of the summer, including No Kings Day in June and Good Trouble Lives On in July.
Event organizers declined to provide official estimates of the number of people attending the Labor Day protests across the country.
Colorful, handmade signs ran the gamut, featuring slogans criticizing the nation's billionaires, supporting scientific research and advocating for due process and other constitutional rights.
The rallies across the nation on Labor Day and the surrounding days are part of an effort to keep the momentum going from other mass demonstrations and keep pressure not only on President Donald Trump, organizers say, but also the billionaires who support or benefit from his administration.
“It’s important to show that there is opposition to the Trump-billionaire agenda in every community big and small, it’s not just cities that are united against what’s happening… it’s all towns, it’s small towns that voted overwhelmingly for Trump,” Saqib Bhatti, executive director of Action Center on Race and the Economy, told USA TODAY. “It’s very important to show the opposition is there in all these places."
Keep up with the USA TODAY Network's coverage of demonstrations from coast to coast.
Hundreds gather outside Trump Tower in Manhattan
Across the street from the Trump Tower in New York, several hundred protesters gathered on 5th Ave. Demonstrators occupied a sidewalk, handing out chicken tacos. Chants, including "New York is a working town," were led by organizers and a brass band.
Taylor Rogers, a White House spokesperson, said in a Sept 1. statement to USA TODAY that “No one has done more for working men and women than President Trump."
Trump has "championed an agenda that always puts them first — from signing the largest middle-class tax cuts in history to securing nearly $10 trillion in new investments to create high-paying jobs across our country."
The Labor Day weekend events, locally organized and tailored to local concerns, are led by labor organizations, including the AFL-CIO, national advocacy groups such as May Day Strong, Public Citizen and Indivisible as well as dozens of local advocacy groups. Some began late last week, while others will continue throughout the first week of September.
Rally in Detroit
Thousands of sheet metal workers, police lieutenants, health care workers, teachers and auto material handlers and more turned out with their family members to march a mile in the Corktown neighborhood of Detroit. They pulled numerous wagons with sleepy looking toddlers, double strollers and tiny tennis shoes.
Several local elected officials or people running for public office were spotted marching in support with tradesmen and demonstrators in the Detroit neighborhood of Corktown. But they had been asked in advance to keep the focus on the marching workers and not to take the microphone, said Byron Osbern, a business agent and organizer with IBEW Local 58.
Large crowds gather in Tallahassee
Organizations across Tallahassee, Florida, held a “Workers Over Billionaires,” protest to demand just wages, benefits and appreciation for workers across the state's Big Bend. The protest took place on the steps of the Florida Historic Capitol Museum.
The Tallahassee event, hosted by a local AFL-CIO chapter, brought large crowds to Florida’s capital city, including politicians, unions and others supporting the mission.
“As we celebrate labor today – our workers – we celebrate each and every person who rolls up their sleeves and digs in to make this country great,” Leon Classroom Teachers Association member Shari Gewanter said to the crowd.
Protestors throughout the event held signs in support of workers' rights and against Trump, with messages similar to those of the “No Kings” protests from June. As cars passed the demonstration, some stopped and honked their horns in solidarity with the crowd.
Floridians turn out around the state
Protests also took place in several other Florida locations, including Fort Myers, Palm Beach, Port St. Lucie and Vero Beach.
“He’s (President Trump) just dismantling our democracy, one institution at a time," Vero Beach resident Pat Holland alleged at one protest. “Every time we have a demonstration, I hope that it gets bigger because people are not putting up with it.”
A rally in Daytona Beach drew 200 - 300 people, estimated Kelly Czajkowski, event organizer and president of "Just Us Volusia." The issue is not about "right versus left," Czajkowski said. "It's top versus bottom. ... The money is at the top, and basic things that workers need are not being met."
Boston kicks off first-ever Labor Day Parade
Organizers in Boston kicked off the city's first-ever Labor Day Parade with a rally in front of the State House, leading the crowd in chants of "union power." The event, which Mayor Michelle Wu and Governor Maura Healey attended, was followed by a march to City Hall Plaza along a "powerful route that honors the victories of the past."
Boston is one of almost 30 towns in Massachusetts, including on Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard, that planned to hold Labor Day protests against President Donald Trump's administration.
Chicago mayor joins Labor Day rally
Meanwhile in Chicago, Mayor Brandon Johnson joined demonstrators for a Labor Day rally and march that started at the city's Haymarket Memorial. A speaker told the crowd the march would take the group to Target, a Tesla dealership and Valor Equity Partners, which was founded by Antonio Gracias, a former high-ranking DOGE volunteer.
Elsewhere in Chicago, groups including the Chicago Teachers Union and Service Employees International Union gathered at Heritage Green Park for a rally opposing Trump’s threats to send federal agents to the city, The TRiiBE reported.
Rally at South Carolina State House
Demonstrators also gathered in front of the South Carolina State House ahead of a Sept. 1 march, according to a livestream of the event captured by local media. A demonstrator dressed in what appeared to be an orange prison jumpsuit, shackles and a mask made to look like Sen. Lindsey Graham, briefly appeared on stage alongside speakers including faith leaders and organizers eliciting boos from the crowd.
Demonstrations were planned in at least 10 South Carolina cities, including Greenville where groups gathered in the city's Unity Park from noon to 2 p.m.
Local groups, including 50501 SC, the Greenville Progressive Coalition, and Indivisible Upstate SC, were also organizing "Bridge the Gap Upstate" on Labor Day. That's a coordinated action to drop banners and signs from highway overpass bridges across the state while many travel the roads for the long weekend, according to an event flyer.
Barbecues
Several of the events were designed to incorporate families and show off what unions do. Some were festivals and parades rather than marches and rallies, though hundreds of those are scheduled as well.
Organized Power In Numbers Executive Director Neidi Dominguez told USA TODAY that organizers wanted “to do something that clearly says we’re in a different moment right now and out communities are hurting and we have to be turning out and showing up for each other in this moment more than ever.”
Organizers in Madison, Wisconsin, were hosting Labor Fest 2025 on Madison Labor Temple grounds, featuring live music, food trucks and children’s events, as well as a collection drive for students in families who are homeless.
In Shoreline, Washington, organizers touted sign-waving and a march, as well as a Back-to-School Drive to collect supplies for local students.
Billionaires
Some of the protests and rallies were planned to target particular corporate actors “that are really helping drive the authoritarian agenda,” Bhatti said.
That includes people and companies that donated to Trump’s political action committees, those who worked for Elon Musk's Department Of Government Efficiency or who have financially benefited from moves by the Trump administration. Some planned events included marches or rallies outside their homes.
Contributing: Seth Harrison, USA TODAY; Laura Gersony, Arizona Republic; Bella Carpentier, Greenville News; Darcie Moran, Detroit Free Press; Michaela Galligan and Margie Cullen, USA TODAY NETWORK; Sheldon Gardner, Kaila Jones and Gianna Montesano, USA TODAY Network Florida; and Angela George, USA TODAY Network South Dakota.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Unions, community groups join forces for Labor Day protests against Trump and billionaires
Reporting by Sarah D. Wire, N'dea Yancey-Bragg and Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
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