Thousands of demonstrators gathered in the nation’s capital on Friday for May Day, using the international workers’ holiday to protest policies from President Donald Trump’s administration and push for labor rights, immigration reform and D.C. statehood.
Crowds marched along the National Mall before converging on a labor-focused rally at Franklin Park. Organizers said the demonstrations built on recent “No Kings” protests held in the District and across the country.
“We teach in schools. We start small businesses. We clean buildings, we build homes, we harvest food, and we keep entire industries moving forward,” one speaker told the crowd, pointing to National Education Association members gathered near the stage. “But we are saying no more. We are moving from stolen labor to collective people power.”
Among the speakers was Jennifer Vasquez Sura, the wife of Maryland resident Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose immigration case has drawn national attention.
Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March 2025 and spent months in a maximum-security prison before being returned to the United States last summer.
Since returning to the U.S., Abrego Garcia has been indicted on federal charges in Tennessee. A federal judge has ruled the government cannot re-detain or deport him while the case proceeds through the courts.
“I stood (here on) May Day last year, fighting for my husband,” Vasquez Sura said. “A message from my husband Kilmar: … ‘Because of that fight, I am now home with my family, my wife and an ability to continue fighting in courts for my due process.’”
Later Friday, a separate pro-labor event focused on D.C. statehood drew hundreds to 16th Street near the former Black Lives Matter Plaza, not far from the headquarters of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations.
Attendees listened to live music and discussed organizing efforts to make D.C. the 51st state.
“We can’t do what we need for our communities unless we have autonomy — control over our laws and our budget,” said D.C. resident Katharine Landfield.
Alex Dodds, co-founder of the advocacy group Free DC, said the movement is gaining momentum despite opposition from the Trump administration and congressional Republicans.
“We’re going to be the 51st state,” Dodds said. “We’re pushing back against policies that harm our communities and taking that fight forward.”
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