Is it hot in here, or is it just these protest signs?
From New York City to Washington, DC, from Los Angeles to Boston, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets this Saturday, April 5, in a massive show of anti-Trump, anti-Musk, anti-fascist mobilization filled with art and signage that was critical, cheeky, and decidedly no-bullshit.
Artistically inclined protesters came out in force with hand-made placards, elaborate illustrations, and in-your-face effigies targeting everything from Trump’s cruel immigration crackdown to DOGE’s attacks on arts and culture funding.
In DC, one marcher held up a painted canvas portraying Luigi Mangione slaying Goliath; in Manhattan, drawings and montages drew parallels between Trump’s ascent and the rise of authoritarianism throughout history. A collage of Elon Musk co-opted the “Stop the Steal” slogan of January 6 rioters to show Trump voters who, exactly, is stealing what.
Below are the cheekiest, most brazen, chef’s-kiss-meriting signs we saw at this weekend’s protests, captured by Hyperallergic and others — because “Dump Trump” is so 2016, am I right?
A Manhattan sign that goes straight to the point (photo Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)A dig at Musk’s Wisconsin loss in a Washington, DC, protest sign (photo Isa Farfan/Hyperallergic)Mmmm … oligarchs. (photo Valentina Di Liscia/Hyperallergic)A protest sign in Washington, DC (photo Isa Farfan/Hyperallergic)Prints and illustrations filled the streets this weekend. (photo Valentina Di Liscia/Hyperallergic)Some protesters got especially crafty. (photo Valentina Di Liscia/Hyperallergic)Marchers down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan (photo Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)Hand-drawn signs and artworks in New York City (photo Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)Marchers walking down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan (photo Valentina Di Liscia/Hyperallergic)A protest sign for women’s rights in Manhattan (photo Valentina Di Liscia/Hyperallergic)Protesters co-opted the “Stop the Steal” messaging of pro-Trump rioters to take aim at Elon Musk. (photo Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)You don’t need to be an emoji expert to decode this one. (photo Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)Hand-drawn signs advocate for climate policy (photo Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)A sign in Washington, DC, took aim at the recent Signal chat fiasco. (photo by Dominic Gwinn/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)At least 100,000 marched in Manhattan (photo Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)Demonstrators hold signs in Columbia, South Carolina (photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)A Manhattan protester holds up a Trump effigy (photo Valentina Di Liscia/Hyperallergic)One protester’s wearable sign (photo Valentina Di Liscia/Hyperallergic)Many signs took aim at Israel’s attacks on Palestine (photo Valentina Di Liscia/Hyperallergic)
Valentina Di Liscia is the News Editor at Hyperallergic. Originally from Argentina, she studied at the University of Chicago and is currently working on her MA at Hunter College, where she received the…
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