Protesters planning to disrupt Donald Trump's big day
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Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to fill the nation's capital for the inauguration of Donald Trump, and while the majority of those expected in Washington on Friday will be there to celebrate, some protesters say their plan is to do their best to disrupt the day.
Late Thursday evening, protesters and supporters of Trump clashed outside a pro-Trump event in Washington. Police used chemical spray on some protesters in an effort to control the unruly crowd. Hundreds gathered outside the National Press Club in downtown Washington, where the "DeploraBall" was being held. The name is a play on a campaign remark by Hillary Clinton, who once referred to many of Trump's supporters as a "basket of deplorables."
In New York, actors Robert De Niro, Sally Field and Mark Ruffalo joined hundreds of other people outside a Donald Trump building on Thursday for a pre-inauguration demonstration, with more demonstrations are expected Friday. A coalition calling itself DisruptJ20, after the date of the inauguration, says people participating in its actions in Washington will attempt to shut down or cause delays at security checkpoints going in to the inauguration ceremony. They intend to block checkpoints and in some cases risk arrest. "Our goals are to have to have massive protests and to shut down the inauguration if at all possible, and if not possible—if we can't shut the inauguration down—then make it as difficult as possible for Trump to act as if he has a mandate," organizer David Thurston told reporters last week.
