Wisconsinites joined those in several other states Thursday night, marching to oppose Donald Trump’s election as United States president. Thousands of people rallied in Madison and Milwaukee. Roughly 1,500 people took to downtown Milwaukee streets.
People chanted “Not my president” and many carried signs stating the same. Other signs called for the Republican president-elect to be impeached or jailed. The protestors occasionally blocked intersections, but after some traffic delays, police rerouted vehicles to other streets.
Among the marchers in the racially mixed crowd was a Latina, Claudia Silva, who said she’s worried about the possibility of Trump increasing deportations to Mexico.
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“I’m a legal U.S. citizen,” Silva said, “But to people (who) don’t know me, they don’t know that just because (of) the color of my skin, so it’s something we all fear.”
Victor Trussell, who is African-American, said it was important to show a large presence. He said plenty of Trump’s rhetoric has been objectionable, but Trussell also finds fault with what he calls, “the system that is anti-black, that is homophobic, that’s not ready for a woman president or for women to be equal to men.”
Demonstrations were also held Thursday night in other U.S. cities. Some communities resumed protests that began Wednesday night.
The protests Thursday in Wisconsin, though large, were nonviolent, according to several media outlets.
The scenes in downtown Milwaukee, Madison and elsewhere stood in stark contrast to Trump’s Thursday visit with President Barack Obama at the White House. The two men shook hands, and pledged cooperation during the upcoming transition of power. Trump also visited Janesville Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan on Capitol Hill.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett wouldn’t say Friday if city police will take a tougher stance against any additional protests over the election of Trump. A conservative Milwaukee alderman said the protesters disrupted traffic and should have had a permit.
Barrett isn’t revealing any new strategy.
“I think it’s gonna depend on what it is,” Barrett said. “Again, I’m looking to do what I can to improve this community. That’s why today when we got up, we started to work on Veterans Day events. I think there’s some people who want to fight battles left and right over and over again, from both sides, and I don’t see that as particularly productive. I want to get things done.”
Barrett says if Donald Trump succeeds as President, the nation will succeed.
Editor’s Note: This story was updated with additional reporting at 3:52 p.m. Friday.
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