A NYPD officer keeps watch during an anti-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) protest, after a U.S. immigration agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good in her car in Minneapolis, near the 26 Federal Plaza building in Lower Manhattan in New York City, U.S., January 10, 2026. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
(New York, New York) – Thousands of New Yorkers are expected to walk out of work and class early today as part of a nationwide protest marking the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration.
The demonstrations are being organized by a group called Free America, which says rallies will begin at 2 p.m. at major NYC locations including Central Park, Prospect Park, Washington Square Park, and Trump Tower in Midtown. Organizers are also urging students to leave classrooms and join the protests.
According to organizers, more than 40,000 people nationwide have RSVP’d to participate in walkouts and rallies across the country. The group’s website claims the protests are aimed at what it calls an “escalating fascist threat,” citing ICE raids and troops occupying cities one year into Trump’s second term.
City officials are preparing for large crowds at multiple sites as the coordinated walkout unfolds during the workday-potentially disrupting traffic, transit, and business operations in Manhattan and Brooklyn.