About 8,000 people rallied and marched at the Colorado Capitol in Denver for one of the many volunteer-organized Hands Off! protests against the Trump administration that took place around the country Saturday.
Several speakers including union workers, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, Democratic state Sen. Jessie Danielson and Colorado state director of GreenLatinos Ean Tafoya among other activists and concerned citizens addressed the crowd before protesters embarked on a 2-mile march through downtown Denver. Attendees held a variety of homemade as well as branded Hands Off! signs highlighting Medicaid, Social Security, fair elections, LGBTQ+ rights, public lands, veterans services, and other public services seen to be at risk under President Donald Trump.
Weiser, a Democrat who is running for governor in 2026, told the crowd that the Trump administration “didn’t get the memo that immigrants make America great,” which is why he joined a lawsuit challenging Trump’s “unimaginable step of thinking a Sharpie could overrule the Constitution” when he issued an executive order to end birthright citizenship.
“In America, when we stand together, when we stand on our principles, we will always prevail,” Weiser said. “We cannot be silenced.”
Colorado has joined multiple lawsuits challenging actions of the Trump administration, many of which Weiser addressed at the rally. That includes a challenge to a Trump order banning gender-affirming care for anyone under age 19 and an order that halted distribution of federal funding and grants.
“What we need to recognize is the rule of law, the Constitution — they are in the balance,” Weiser said. “And I believe as we come through this, we will come through stronger, because we will better understand why we need to fight for our critical values, for equal protection of the laws, for freedom of speech, and yes, for due process of law.”
Luna Baez, daughter of Jeanette Vizguerra, a nationally known immigration rights activist who lives in Denver and has been in ICE custody since March 17, spoke at the rally seeking support for her mother. Baez said her mother was targeted because she consistently voices her support for immigrants, transgender rights and a ceasefire in Gaza, among other issues.
“I think we could all come to an agreement that the reason she was targeted was because she chooses to exercise her First Amendment rights,” Baez said. “I’m tired of seeing this sort of barrier where people think that everyone’s fight is exclusive and we can’t all come together toward the same thing, because we’re all under attack under the same people, under the same administration.”
Jim and Pam Cosgrove pose for a photo at the Hands Off! rally and march opposing President Donald Trump’s administration on April 5, 2025, at the Colorado Capitol in Denver. The protest was one of over 1,000 planned across the country. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline)
Jim and Pam Cosgrove came to the rally from Littleton because they’re “fed up with the direction the country is going,” Jim said. Pam said the U.S. is meant to “help the underdog,” and instead government leaders are “pissing everybody off.”
“If you’re not outraged by it, you’re not paying attention,” Jim said. He is retired after spending 38 years as a police officer in Denver, and said this was his first time at a protest on the side of the protesters. He walked around holding a large sign that said “orange lies matter.”
“I think it’s been generations since you’ve seen this kind of public involvement in politics,” Jim said. “Probably the Vietnam War was the last time I remember seeing consistent protests of this strength. It’s a very strong message that people are not happy.”
The rally in Denver was one of more than 1,000 Hands Off! events planned Saturday in all 50 states. Organizers hosted several other protests around Colorado in Boulder, Bailey, Greeley, Fraser, Telluride, Glenwood Springs, La Junta, Durango, Grand Junction, Summit County, Fort Collins, Loveland and Fairplay.
Morgan Miransky, a volunteer who helped organize the rally, said he’s been an activist for over 30 years and felt bringing people together for a rally is the most effective way to show elected officials when people are not happy. He said a group of about seven organizations worked together to plan the rally.
“We were expecting a good turnout, but this is better than we thought it would be here,” Miransky said. “We’re looking forward to having more people come out and join us, and we’re hoping to build this into a larger nationwide movement for resistance.”
Jenett Tillotson holds a sign at the Hands Off! rally and march opposing President Donald Trump’s administration on April 5, 2025, at the Colorado Capitol in Denver. The protest was one of over 1,000 planned across the country. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline)
Jenett Tillotson, a longtime supporter of U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who drew a crowd of over 10,000 people during an appearance in Denver in March, said she is “tired of billionaires running our country.” She said “we would be fine” if the government taxed billionaires. Billionaires are “hoarding money,” Tillotson said, and if they were hoarding anything else, “we would call them nuts.” She stood on the lawn in front of the Capitol building holding a large homemade sign that said “tax the rich.”
“People are suffering, and income equality is the biggest that we’ve ever seen, ever,” Tillotson said. “You’re talking about why people can’t afford healthcare, because they don’t make enough money to afford health care.”
The high turnout at the rally tells elected officials that people are upset, Tillotson said. She said protests and rallies like Hands Off! will keep growing “until they listen to us.”
“This is our country, the people’s country,” Tillotson said. “It’s not the billionaires’ country, it’s not Trump’s country. It’s not even Democrats or Republicans’. It’s the people’s.”
