On President's Day, about 400 people in Columbus joined the 50501 movement. The 50501 movement is 50 protests, 50 states, one day. The first protest on Feb. 5 was started on Reddit on Jan 25.
The protest calls for both the removal of Trump from office due to his policies and the removal of Elon Musk from Trump's administration. Musk has become a public face associated with the many changes to the government by leading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
DOGE is an organization that was started to carry out fixing the national debt by cutting what it deems as unnecessary. DOGE has cut funding to multiple organizations including the Department of Homeland Security, Agriculture Department and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Musk claims that Social Security is giving out too much money to people that are no longer alive. Musk also started controversy for posting on Twitter a meme of Sydney Sweeney smiling with the caption, “Watching Trump slash federal programs because it doesn’t affect you because you’re not a member of the ‘Parasite Class.'”
Leigha, a speaker at the protest who did not provide a last name, was a worker that was laid off due to the cut in funding.
“I'm watching the leader of an unrecognized department call people that need to live on social security and people that need to utilize safety net programs ... I'm watching them be called vermin, leeches--and they're not. I’m not far off from potentially someday also utilizing these programs, and it's insulting. It's degrading. It's dehumanizing. And it's very reminiscent of what certain historical entities did to entire groups of people.”
Leigha's decision to show up and speak at these protests is personal.
“I don't feel like I have a choice. I'll be a real shit American if I just sat here and continued to pretend it wasn't a big deal," Leigha said. "I can't be one of those Americans that's like, 'Well, it's not directly affecting me, so whatever.'”
Another individual at the protest, Natasha Wheatley-Caffrey, also said that it's important for people to speak their mind and brought her kids with her to the event.
“It is their country too, and they need to understand early in life that it's not about being passive; it's about being active and that when you have values, you take action based off those values," Wheatley-Caffrey said.
The protest organizers are organizing to host another 50501 protest on March 4. The organizers for Columbus are giving away food at Crossroads World Outreach Ministries for a spending blackout day on Feb 28.
Learning to recognize esports
