More than 500 protesters gathered in Detroit’s Corktown neighborhood to mark May Day by criticizing President Donald Trump’s policies on labor, immigration, LGBTQ+ rights and more.
The demonstration held during a rainy afternoon May 1 at Roosevelt Park was one of more than 1,000 that took place in every state and abroad as part of International Workers’ Day, a global labor rights observance held annually on May 1. Organizers said the Detroit protest was aimed at highlighting how protesters believe the Trump administration has harmed workers, immigrants and organized labor.
“The people united will never be defeated,” the crowd chanted, with Michigan Central Station as the backdrop. Protesters lined up on sidewalks and held up a plethora of signs, including some that read “When due process dies, dictators arise,” and “Stop U.S. Wars. Fund Human Needs.”
Protestors gather at Roosevelt Park in Detroit’s Corktown neighborhood to mark May Day by protesting President Donald Trump’s policies on Thursday, May 1, 2025.
The May 1 events are the latest in a wave of protests against Trump since he took office. In Michigan, similar rallies were held in cities all over the state, including Ann Arbor, Novi, Lansing and Howell, with some additional events scheduled through May 3.
May Day traces back to the 1886 Haymarket Affair in Chicago, where a labor protest for an eight-hour workday turned violent after a bomb was thrown and gunfire was exchanged, resulting in police and civilian deaths.
More: What to know about May Day protests in Michigan
The Roosevelt Park rally was organized by May Day Detroit, 50501 Michigan and Moratorium NOW! Coalition. Abayomi Azikiwe with the Moratorium NOW! Coalition said his coalition opposes tariffs, the administration’s anti-immigrant bias and wants to see the wars that are taking place ended, among other demands.
Brynne Curtis, who sat on a bench holding a sign that said “Nothing to lose but our chains” before the protest officially started, said it’s her job to fight for people who can’t and to use her privilege to stand up for a better world.
“Doesn’t matter what you believe in, what God you follow, what race, creed or color you are,” the 35-year-old Detroit resident said. “We as people of the world, deserve to live in a good society that cares about us.”
U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, said she came to the demonstration to support working men and women on May Day.
“Today is the day that we celebrate the rights of workers,” Dingell said. “People are really worried about when the federal government takes away the rights of federal government workers to organize, that people are being fired. Today is about a day to fight for worker rights. Sometimes, we take things for granted, but suddenly you can’t take anything for granted anymore.”
As demonstrators criticized the Trump administration, a White House spokesperson, Liz Huston, defended the president’s labor record in a statement to the Free Press.
“President Trump has fought harder for the American worker than any President in history,” Huston said. “From day one, he delivered trillions of dollars in new investment, rolled back burdensome regulations, ended decades-long unfair trade practices that were ripping off American companies, and created thousands of jobs.”
The UAW has expressed support for Trump’s work on tariffs, and, as Politico has reported, the Teamsters’ president has supported his labor secretary. Conversely, the American Federation of Government Employees criticized Trump for ending collective bargaining for federal agencies tied to national security and is now among labor unions suing over the firing of federal workers, according to reports from The Associated Press and Reuters.
More: In campaign-style rally, Trump touts accomplishments, roasts Democrats, in Warren
Detroit resident Frank Hammer also attended the protest, saying he is worried about federal government workers’ rights.
“I’m here because I believe that workers currently are under severe attack … and this is the way of showing solidarity with workers across the U.S. and even across the world, and to speak out on behalf of the working class,” Hammer, 82, a former president and chairman of UAW Local 909, told the Free Press at the demonstration.
Free Press reporter Darcie Moran contributed to this report.
(This story was updated to add a video.)
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Hundreds protest Trump’s policies at May Day demonstration in Detroit
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