Labor Day protests across the Bay Area drew thousands of participants Monday, aiming to push back against a “war on working people.”
From San Francisco to Oakland to San Jose, more than 20 demonstrations took place across the Bay Area as part of a nationwide day of protest called Workers Over Billionaires set to coincide with Labor Day. Across the country, close to 1,000 protests were planned in all 50 states and were organized nationally by AFL-CIO with partner organizations.
“The greatest goal is to show that we are not backing down, that we continue to show up and fight for what we believe in — in ever increasing numbers and ever increasing physical mass, making the line longer,” said IdaRose Sylvester, an organizer of the Hands Across Santa Clara to Redwood City protest, which aimed to have 17,000 people lining a 17 mile stretch along El Camino Real. “We are making a very strong statement that we will continue to show up and fight for what we believe in.”
The protests were against what organizers called a war on working people. They said issues included the Trump administration’s cuts to public programs that support working families and deportation efforts by Immigration and Customs Enforcement across the country of noncitizens living in the U.S. without permission…