May Day protests held throughout the Northwest

By Johanna Bejarano, Renee Diaz and Phineas Pope

May Day in Yakima

In Yakima, hundreds gathered at Miller Park for a May Day event.

A rally and a march were held, which brought together families, workers and advocates.

It commemorated International Workers’ Day, but people also expressed dissatisfaction with the Trump administration. Protesters also demanded justice, dignity and equality for all, and asked for the protection of democracy and of immigrants.

At least 400 people marched through the streets of Yakima.

“I am dissatisfied with what’s happening in our country today. I’m concerned about democracy. I value democracy, and I think it’s important that everybody be treated fairly,” Barb Brantingham said.

Diana Craig held up a sign in support of immigrant communities.

“They’re very important part of the community and make us prosperous here in Washington,” Craig said. “I can’t even imagine what it would be like without our immigrant community or our Latino community.”

Claudia Vera, another demonstrator, said she wanted immigrants to be valued.

“We come to support all the workers who can’t raise their voices,” she said in Spanish.  

During the rally, community members depicted the undocumented immigrant experience in a staged performance. In the background, the song “Mojado” by Guatemalan singer Ricardo Arjona played, describing the journey of undocumented immigrants coming to the U.S.

“It’s not just a representation, or what the song says. It goes beyond that. It’s a reality where we are involved,” said Gustavo Rubin, of the May 1st Coalition of Yakima, in Spanish.

Rubin said that the performance showed the different stages of immigration. It started with people leaving their homes, families and country. The performance also shows the risks people face crossing the border and when they get a job in the U.S.

 But the story, said Rubin, also showed the uncertainty undocumented immigrants face, like trying to avoid detentions and family separations. The staging ends with the families reunited and watching their children fulfill their dreams. 

May Day in Wenatchee

In Wenatchee, about 60 people attended a May Day protest, part of a National Day of Action. It included protests against executive orders from former President Donald Trump and funding cuts directed by Elon Musk. Demonstrators focused on how federal funding cuts and executive orders are affecting rural communities.

Michael Hewitt, 78, is a retired Marine Corps colonel who served 22 years in the military—from flying missions in Vietnam to participating in Operation Desert Storm. He has lived in Lake Chelan for the past 17 years.

Hewitt said he has voted for both Democrats and Republicans over the years. But he’s frustrated with the Trump administration.

“They are disintegrating the Constitution,” Hewitt said. “It’s something I risked my life to protect. They are destroying — trying to destroy — our Constitution, and that’s my No. 1 concern. I defended it with my life. We need conservatism, and we need liberalism. We need a balance, and we need to move and flow with it. Depending on how the economy and world are going, you adjust. But you don’t throw the baby out with the bath water. You don’t go off the deep end.”

Keith Madsen, a retired church pastor, also attended the protest. Carrying a clipboard, he urged people to sign a petition to disband the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

“DOGE has fired federal workers illegally,” Madsen said. “They’re also messing with Social Security, which we worked our whole lives to earn. That’s a worker’s concern. They want to take away Medicaid for the working poor. All of these workers are affected by these cuts.”

Demonstration in Moscow, Idaho

At East City Park in Moscow, Idaho, people expressed their frustrations and concerns with a range of issues including tariffs, social security threats and public health.

Instead of a traditional protest, the event was based around people sharing their personal stories on a stage. Over 100 people attended the event. 

Ryan Urie is on the steering committee of Indivisible Moscow, a local chapter of Indivisible, which describes themselves as “a grassroots movement … with a mission to … defeat the Trump agenda.”

“Telling our stories is what makes what’s happening real,” Urie said.

Urie said he’s worried about his parents not having access to Social Security, his son with autism, with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. leading the Department of Health and Human Services and his daughter not having access to reproductive care in the future. 

“I have to worry about my wife, who’s a schoolteacher, who might have to deal with an ICE raid and have to protect her students from that. When she’s not running them through an active shooter drill,” he said.

Moscow resident Mary Hughes was asked about what issues she’s concerned about. She said, “every last one of them.”

Hughes, who said she is on Social Security, said it would be a “very tight squeeze” if she lost it.

Michael McCoy runs Essential Art Gallery in Moscow. He said business has been down, and he’s not sure how long he can keep open. He blames the tariffs. 

“Today I sold a little bit of chocolate and a few cards,” he said. “And you can’t keep the lights on when that’s all you’re selling.”

Towards the end of the event, organizers handed out slips of paper with phone numbers of all the members of Congress. Organizers told people to call them and leave a message. They also handed out slips of paper with messages that included phrases to say, which included lines about ending tariffs, and not cutting programs like Head Start and SNAP.