Thousands gather in Sioux Falls to protest Trump’s actions

Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight

SIOUX FALLS — A crowd estimated in the thousands protested Saturday in downtown Sioux Falls as part of a nationwide movement to resist President Donald Trump’s agenda, with attendees focusing on the protection of things such as abortion rights, Social Security and free trade.

“My angst is really about the millions of people who are hurting and will hurt because of his policies,” said Roni Wegner, with Indivisible 605, which helped organize the protest. “I don’t see how it’s going to help. There is no long-term plan.”

Another attendee, Reed Boysen, said, “This is not a left or right moment, this is a right or wrong moment.”

There were also protests in Pierre and Rapid City. The South Dakota chapter of the national 50501 Movement (50 protests, 50 states, one movement) was an organizer, saying that the protests were staged to “resist executive overreach, defend democracy, and oppose the harmful policies of Project 2025.” Conservative political groups wrote and published the Project 2025 plan as a roadmap to remake the federal government during Trump’s presidency.

The 50501 movement called on South Dakotans to “remove corrupt politicians from office,” “reverse the damage inflicted” and “reclaim our rights, our government and our future.”

Since Trump took office, he has moved rapidly with billionaire Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency to fire hundreds of thousands of federal workers, cut or freeze billions in federal government spending, eliminate the federal Department of Education and take other actions that drew protesters into the streets Saturday.