WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — Several protests are taking place across Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia on Wednesday in response to recent actions taken by the Trump administration.
Since taking office, President Donald Trump has signed a wide range of executive orders, including, but not limited to, ending federal diversity, equity and inclusion programs, increasing border security, restoring capital punishment and ending birthright citizenship.
In rejection of the Trump administration’s actions, protests are breaking out nationwide, including across the DMV.
DC News Now has compiled a list of some of the protests taking place across the District, Maryland and Virginia on Wednesday, Feb. 5:
50 Protests, 50 States, 1 day (50501)
At state capitals across the country, protestors are gathering for the 50 Protests, 50 States, One Day movement, also known as 50501.
According to the organizers, 50501 is a grassroots movement opposing Project 2025 and the actions of the Trump administration. It has primarily been organized online under the hashtags #50501 and #buildtheresistance.
In the DMV, the protests are expected to start around noon at the United States Capitol in Washington D.C., the Maryland State House in Annapolis and the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond.
Rally Against Attacks on USAID
Starting at 11:30 a.m., protestors began gathering for a rally outside of the Capitol at Upper Senate Park to condemn the Trump administration and Elon Musk’s efforts to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Members of Congress spoke at the rally, as ralliers chanted, “Do your job! Do your job! Do your job!”
The USAID has been one of the agencies hardest hit as the Trump administration and Musk’s budgeting team target federal programs that are not in line with the administration, according to a report from the Associated Press. The humanitarian agency assists other countries trying to escape poverty or recover from disaster.
Keep DOGE out of DOL
In a post on Instagram, event organizers called the community to gather in front of the Department of Labor in Northwest at 3 p.m. to tell the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), “Hands off our data!”
Organizers noted that the protest comes as sources say the Department of Labor is “next on Musk’s takeover list.”
The flyer added that “working people deserve a strong Department of Labor, not one run by unaccountable billionaires and greedy CEOs.”
American businessman Elon Musk heads the DOGE, a department created by President Trump on his first day in office. The department was created to “provide advice and guidance” from outside the government, according to a report from NewsNation.
All Out to OPM
In Northwest D.C., protests are planned every day this week from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. in front of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
Organizers with the “Fork Off Coalition” encourage participants to “bring megaphones and friends” to engage in “peaceful rallies to stop the Musk coup.”
According to online flyers, the protest is to reject and raise awareness of Trump’s “Fork in the Road” directive, also known as the deferred resignation program. The program offers federal employees pay through Sept. 30, 2025, if they resign by Feb. 6.
