Tens of thousands of people across the United States took part in a coordinated economic blackout on International Workers' Day, building on a similar action in Minnesota earlier this year. Organisers called for 'no school, no work, no shopping' as part of more than 3,500 'May Day Strong' events, including walkouts, marches and blockades.
The protest movement was inspired by a January demonstration in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, where residents left school and work to protest federal immigration raids. Friday's action saw participants block bridges, occupy hotels and rally outside institutions such as the New York Stock Exchange, with arrests reported in several cities.
In Manhattan, youth-led Sunrise Movement activists chained themselves to the stock exchange entrance and were arrested after about an hour. Similar protests in Portland and Minneapolis also led to arrests. Amazon workers, Teamsters and local politicians marched to Amazon's corporate offices in New York, demanding the company cut contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security.
Leah Greenberg of Indivisible, a key organiser, described the blackout as a 'structure test' for the movement. 'We are asking people to take a step into further exerting their power in all aspects of their lives – as workers, as students, as members of local organising hubs,' she said. Teachers and students also played a prominent role, with at least 22 school districts in North Carolina closing on Friday after teachers took leave to join the protests.
Healthcare workers in Chicago marched on an Amazon warehouse, while protesters in Memphis blocked the entrance to Elon Musk's xAI datacenter. The May Day Strong coalition includes labour unions, immigrants' rights groups, the Democratic Socialists of America and the organisers behind the No Kings protests.
