Bennito L. Kelty
Audio By Carbonatix
Almost a month after the Rage against the Regime protests, another nationwide call for protest is coming. This Labor Day, September 1, demonstrators want to keep up public pressure against President Donald Trump and call for more support for the country’s working class.
The Workers Over Billionaires protest, as national organizers are calling it, is set to take place in all fifty states today, and Denver is expected to be part of the action.
“Labor and community are planning more than a barbecue on Labor Day this year-we have to stop the billionaire takeover,” May Day Strong, a national organizer, writes in a description of the event. “Billionaires are converting the government into their private slush fund…The money they take from working families ends up in billionaires’ pockets and funds a private army of ICE agents.”
A handful of protests in Denver this year, such as the Fifty State Protest in February or the No Kings protest in June, have seen thousands of people show up. Turnouts weren’t as large in July and August for similar days of national protest, but organizers are still optimistic about the turnout on Monday. If you plan on going to protest in Denver today, here’s what to know.
Where Is the Labor Day Protest in Denver?
The rallying point for the Workers Over Billionaires Labor Day protest in Denver will be the Colorado State Capitol Building’s west steps.
The permit for the protest reserves space at Lincoln Veterans’ Memorial Park across the street from the Capitol. Some event descriptions mention an activist fair, a set up with tents for local activist groups to share information and get people involved. Recent protests have featured activist fairs, as well.
When Is the Labor Day Protest?
The protest is scheduled from noon to 4 p.m. today, September 1, according to an online event description. Organizers have a permit to be at the capitol until 5 p.m. Previous protests have gone on later than the planned stop time, however, especially when there’s a march.
Will There be a March at the Protest?
Yes, local organizers with May Day Strong included in its event description plans to march with music to the Governor’s Mansion at 400 East 8th Avenue. Organizers haven’t revealed a start time or route for the march, though.
The Governor’s Mansion is a historical landmark, often used to host events, and not the actual home of Colorado Governor Jared Polis, who lives in Boulder. The walk from the Capitol to the Governor’s Mansion takes about twenty minutes and is a little under a mile long, but organizers might take a longer, indirect route.
How to Get There
Parking can be difficult on the day of the protest if it draws a large turnout, especially along Lincoln Street, Colfax Avenue and Broadway. If you’re trying to avoid congestion, parking or getting dropped off a few blocks from the State Capitol is a good idea.
RTD has several bus stops to leave you right in front of the protest. Bus lines 0, 15 and 83D/L can leave you within a block or two from the Capitol, but since those routes go up Colfax Avenue and Lincoln Street, they can be delayed by a big turnout too. There are no light rail stations in Capitol Hill, but stops at 10th Avenue and Osage Streets and on 16th Street are around thirty-minute walks from the Capitol, and there are plenty of scooters, e-bikes and other transportation options downtown.
Who’s Organizing the Labor Day Protest?
National organizers with the 50501 Movement and May Day Strong called for a mass mobilization online with the hashtag #WorkersOverBillionaires.
According to May Day Strong, one goal of the national protest is to “protect and defend Medicaid, Social Security, and other programs for working people” and to “stop the attacks on immigrants, Black, Indigenous, trans people, and all our communities.”
The permit to gather at the Capitol is held by 50501 and Political Revolution, which are both national groups but have local chapters for Colorado. Other local groups, like the Party for Socialism and Liberation, the Women’s Strike, the Denver Aurora Community Action Committee and the Denver Classroom Teachers Association, are calling on people to join the Labor Day protest, too.
Other Labor Day Protests in Colorado
Workers Over Billionaires protests will be happening in a few other Colorado cities like Colorado Springs, Fairplay, Fort Collins and Longmont. Start times, meeting locations and more details on protests around the state on Monday can be found on an anonymously created online spreadsheet that’s regularly updated.
Some protest plans include holding up signs along major roads and highways, which is what protesters in Brighton, Fairplay and Fraser have in mind. Larger cities like Greeley, Fort Collins and Colorado Springs are planning to gather at a centralized spot for peaceful protests. Nearly all the protests will start between 10 a.m. and noon, with Colorado Springs starting at 1 p.m.
Local groups and chapters, like the El Paso County Progressive Veterans and Indivisible Colorado Springs, are organizing the protests in their respective communities.
