America Gives Trump an Earful at ‘Not My President’s Day’ Rallies

By TRYMAINE LEE, ANDREW RAFFERTY and CORKY SIEMASZKO

FEB 20, 2017

From sea to shining sea, thousands of Americans marked Presidents Day on Monday by denouncing the current occupant of the White House — President Donald Trump.

"Not My President's Day" rallies were staged in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Philadelphia and more than two dozen other cities across the nation in a spirited display of defiance against a president who has been in power for just one month.

In Trump's hometown, a huge throng rallied outside the Trump International Hotel in Manhattan, with the crowd blanketing the southwestern corner of Central Park and singing "We Shall Overcome."

Many carried signs that read "Not My President" and "Resist" and chanted "No Ban, No Wall" — a reference to Trump's executive order on travel by immigrants and his still-unbuilt wall along the Mexican border.

"I'm really concerned for where our country is headed," said Sayief Leshaw, 22, who joined the rally with his boyfriend and another pal. "We've sold out to corporate interests, and Donald Trump's policies are downright offensive."

Sporadic shouting matches erupted in nearby Columbus Circle when a handful of Trump supporters exchanged angry words with rally-goers.

It was the fifth straight day of protests in Gotham against Trump.

A mile from the White House, hundreds packed into DuPont Circle singing "This Land Is Your Land." Many took aim at Trump's alleged cozying-up to Russian strongman Vladimir Putin with signs that read "Happy President's Day President Putin" and "My President? Nyet."

Police blocked off streets as the group marched to the White House, chanting as it went. But it got only as far as far as the fences blocking off the section of Lafayette Park in front of the White House, behind which work crews were taking down the pavilion from which Trump watched the inaugural parade last month.

"Shame! Shame!" the rally-goers chanted.

"We have been doing this every weekend," said Morgan Mullins, 24, of Washington. "We'll keep doing this as long as we have to."

Gayle Fleming, 69, said the rally reminded her of the days when she protested the Vietnam War. She said Trump may have inadvertently spawned a new generation of political activists.

"What I'm seeing, especially being as old as I am, is the amazing interest of people who have never been activists," she said. "This does inspire us. It's the silver lining in the middle of all this horrible stuff."

The mercury hit a record high of 67 degrees in normally frigid Chicago as hundreds of people gathered for a "Not My President's Day" protest across the Chicago River from Trump Tower.

This time, they kept their pants on. Last week, anti-Trump protesters mass-mooned the building to protest Trump's refusal to release his tax records.

Outside Los Angeles City Hall, hundreds more demonstrators rallying against Trump chanted: "Resist! Resist! Resist!"

There was also a massive anti-Trump rally across the pond in London outside the Palace of Westminster, home of the British Parliament. About 1.85 million Brits have signed a petition demanding that Trump be dis-invited from a state visit to the Great Britain later this year.