07 Apr Nationwide Hands Off! Rally Draws Hundreds to El Sobrante in Protest of Trump, Musk

Protesters lined El Sobrante sidewalks Saturday in opposition of President Donald Trump’s new policies.

Story and photos by Joe Porrello

West County residents opposing President Donald Trump’s administrative policies and Elon Musk’s involvement with the federal government gathered in El Sobrante on Saturday to participate in the nationwide “Hands Off!” rally.

“Wherever you are in the nation today, when you leave your home, you are going to see us,” said resident Patrick Fihn, 71, of El Sobrante. “It’s hard to go anywhere today without seeing how many people oppose what’s going on.”

 

Cities in all 50 states held over 1,100 demonstrations in total featuring more than half a million people at state capitols, federal buildings and more locations. Dozens happened in the Bay Area alone in cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Berkeley.

According to Axios, it was expected to be the largest day of action since Trump took office in January.

 

About 500 people protested on the corner of San Pablo Dam Road and Appian Way as countless passing drivers honked in support.

“We thought maybe 25 people would sign up,” said protest organizer Nancy Burke, 66. “I am blown away, and my heart is very full.”

 

After her wife posted the El Sobrante protest on the Mobilize website — used for organizing rallies — Burke said sign-ups began pouring in. She parked her truck with the bed full of creative posters for demonstrators to borrow and hold high as cars passed by.

 

The “Hands Off!” movement and those at the event were protesting things such as the firings of federal workers and cuts to federal programs, Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency accessing private consumer data, the handling of Social Security benefits, attacks on transgender people, and anti-immigrant policies.

“The top of my list is the destruction of our democracy, everything stems from that; without democracy, (Trump) can do whatever he wants,” said Fihn. “I’m a Jew who grew up talking to victims of the Third Reich, and I got news for you, this is how it starts — he’s got his version of the Brownshirts using ICE and Homeland Security.”

The “Brownshirts” were members of the Sturmabteilung, or SA, a Nazi paramilitary organization that “protected party meetings, marched in Nazi rallies, and physically assaulted political opponents,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica.

 

One demonstrator lamented their loss of patriotism due to the current political turmoil.

“I teach high school American History and I’m a proud American, but I took down my (American) flag because I can’t even look at it anymore — it doesn’t make me feel proud, it makes me feel sad,” said protester Debbie Maze, 72, with tears in her eyes. “We fought for this country and we’re just throwing it away.”

 

Some at the rally had never attended a protest before Trump’s first election in 2016, like local resident 77-year-old Maggie Kustle, who now helps hold demonstrations opposing the same political choices on the same corner every Friday starting at 5 p.m.

 

Others have been rallying for decades, such as Frank Hubach, 78 — who was not alone at the event as someone who protested in the 1970s and in their 70s.

“It’s good to be out here, but it’s a little disappointing not to see more young faces,” he said. “Our venue is the street, and the cell phone is the venue for younger people — I recognize that.”

 

Though, Hubach said he was optimistic about the fact “deep red states” were holding their own “Hands Off!” rallies.

“They realize that it’s not the right course. We have to stop (Trump) before he totally dismantles the government,” he said. “Nobody will be able to unscramble this egg.”