Why We're Taking to the Streets on April 5th

Courage is contagious—and public, peaceful resistance is how it spreads

It’s been 68 days since Trump was sworn in again. And already, we’re further down the road to authoritarianism than we could have imagined.

Federal agencies gutted. Thousands of public servants purged. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau wiped out. Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” burrowed into Treasury and Social Security, raiding programs and trying to seize control. ICE allegedly snatching permanent legal residents off the street and deporting people without due process, in open defiance of court orders.

And while they consolidate power, we’re watching something just as dangerous: Obedience. Silence. Compliance.

✔️ Republicans in Congress are tying themselves into knots to excuse lawlessness and gross incompetence (like sharing war plans on Signal).
✔️ Law firms are dropping civil rights cases, fearing political retaliation.
✔️ Media outlets are pulling punches under threat of lawsuits and Musk’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
✔️ Universities are canceling protests and suspending faculty to avoid federal blowback.
✔️ Judges are going quiet in the shadow of a Supreme Court that handed Trump criminal immunity.
✔️ And yes -- even some Democrats are telling themselves it’s safer to stay silent (or, you know, voting to confirm a Trump State Department nominee hours after a major national security incident).

That’s not caution. That’s complicity.

Real-talk: This is how authoritarianism takes hold—through silence, normalization, and a political class hoping someone else will go first.

April 5: We Go Loud

That’s why on Saturday, April 5, we’re taking to the streets.

To say:
✋ Hands off our healthcare.
✋ Hands off our Social Security.
✋ Hands off our schools, our data, our rights, our bodies, our democracy.

We believe peaceful, non-violent resistance works—because we’ve seen it.

From Anchorage to Atlanta, you’ve hosted town halls, confronted MAGA politicians, filled empty chairs, donned chicken suits, and called out Democrats trying to duck the fight. Thousands of you have shown up at 50501 protests across the nation. Historic crowds have joined the “Fighting Oligarchy” rallies with Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

It’s Working—And They Know It

We know we’re having an impact because Elon Musk is attacking us by name. Because what we’re building together is loud, visible, and threatening to those in power.

They see this movement rising. And they’re scared.

That means it’s time to go bigger.

April 5 isn’t just a protest—it’s a recruitment drive. There are millions of people watching this crisis unfold, waiting for a reason to jump in. We need to show them the resistance is real.

We’re not just showing up for ourselves -- we’re showing up for:
→ The judges afraid for their safety
→ The journalists getting threats
→ The federal staffers and university leaders under pressure
→ And yes—the Democrats who’ve lost their nerve

We’re proving they won’t be alone if they choose to fight. That courage is contagious—and public, peaceful resistance is how it spreads.

We Need Your Help to Pull This Off

Here’s how to help right now:

👉 Find an April 5 event near you

👉 Help us spread the word about Hands Off! with our social toolkit

As of today, we’ve got 129 organizational partners—including MoveOn, the Working Families Party, 50501, and more. We’ve got 700+ events in all 50 states—and even one in London.

This is the kind of power they’re scared of.

So on April 5, let’s declare:
We will not go quietly.
We will not obey in advance.
And we will not be ruled by kings.

— Sarah Dohl, Indivisible Co-Founder & Chief Campaigns Officer