1 of 3 | The Refuse Fascism organization, its partners and protesters hold a sign reading “Trump must go now” as they march through Washington on November 6. Photo by Bridget Erin Craig/UPI
Thousands of protesters have descended on Washington as Refuse Fascism and nearly 20 partner groups mark the first week of their “Flood D.C.” campaign to demand President Donald Trump’s removal from office.
The movement, which has pledged to “surround the White House” every Monday for the rest of November, aims to become one of the largest sustained protest efforts since Trump’s re-election. The difference from other demonstrations is they are calling for the removal of Trump and his administration officials.
Rafael Kadaris, a national organizer for Refuse Fascism, said that the movement’s “single, unifying demand we have is that Trump must go now,” emphasizing that sustained turnout “day after day” could “change the equation.”
Founded in 2016, Refuse Fascism is a volunteer led organization with chapters in major United States cities. Its “Flood D.C.” campaign began Nov. 5 with a rally at the Washington Monument, marking one year since Trump’s re-election amid growing concerns over the administration’s policies.
Refuse Fascism has partnered with organizations such as the National Organization for Women, For Liberation and Resistance Everywhere and United Native Americans.
But, the core of the movement lies within the volunteers who travel or move from various states to Washington to attend daily protests throughout the capital.
Kadaris, originally from New York, moved to the district to attend those protests. He said the effort is aimed at keeping pressure on leaders through continuous, nonviolent demonstrations.
“We’re calling on people to come to D.C. from wherever you are in the country,” he said. “We cannot allow fascism to be implanted in this country, and we’re already far along on that path. Now is the time to stand up before the atrocities get even worse.”
He said thousands of volunteers and protesters are projected to come to Washington in coming months “until Trump is actually removed from office.”
Protesters began arriving at the start of November to prepare from states like from California, Hawaii and New Jersey. To support volunteers and protesters from outside the D.C. area, Refuse Fascism set up a donation site and said it had raised more than $158,000.
Ralph Nix, a Refuse Fascism organizer from the D.C. area, said the donations will help those who want to attend, but can’t pay for the trip. Once they arrive, organizers and protesters often stay with friends and family in the area, at youth hostels and in campgrounds.
On Nov. 6, Day 2 of the campaign, about 100 protesters marched from George Washington University to Georgetown University, seeking to rally students along the way, pass out literature and share a way supporters can automatically receive text messages about upcoming events.
During stops on the George Washington campus, protesters talked with students, and some even joined along the way after reading the literature.
On Friday, protesters gathered in front of the Supreme Court in response to their consideration on whether to accept a petition challenging the landmark Obergefell vs. Hodges decision of 2015.
The Supreme Court on Monday let stand the landmark ruling that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, declining to take up a new challenge to it.
For Angie Doll, who moved from Florida to volunteer with Refuse Fascism, she is most concerned regarding this administration’s viewpoint on LGBTQ+ issues.
“They claim to be the party of family values, but what they want to do is rip families apart for being the wrong color, the wrong gender, the wrong everything,” she said, adding that demonstration at the Supreme Court feels especially important to her given the case.
To plan so many protests back-to-back, Nix said some of the movement’s events have permits, but ultimately “This is our First Amendment right to be in the streets,” he said.
On Saturday, protesters marched through Columbia Heights, focusing on Trump’s utilization of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Sunday will be a protest focused on veterans issues.
Kadaris said that videos of ICE raids he has seen online have upset him the most, causing him to take continuous action.
“I stand for all of humanity,” he said, explaining he feels this administration has affected people of all backgrounds.
For example, he recounted that in Chicago on Nov. 5, ICE agents conducted an early‑morning arrest of a daycare worker at the Rayito de Sol center, forcibly removing her in front of children.
