Skip to content Skip to footer

More Than 180 Events Planned Across US to Protest Trump’s March to War With Iran

We have a short window of time to stop a war with Iran. We need a massive protest.

Antiwar activists march from the White House to the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., on January 4, 2020. Protesters gathered to oppose escalating violence toward Iran.

After Iran’s retaliation for the killing of Gen. Qasem Soleimani intensified fears of another catastrophic Middle East war, a coalition of progressive advocacy groups Tuesday reiterated their call for massive demonstrations across the U.S. to protest President Donald Trump’s “military brinksmanship” and demand immediate de-escalation of tensions.

“We will not be forced into another war,” said the coalition, led by MoveOn, Indivisible, Win Without War, and other groups. “On Thursday, January 9, at 5 p.m. local time, the anti-war majority in this country will get visible to oppose Trump’s war and say #NoWarWithIran.”

As of Wednesday morning, more than 180 demonstrations have been planned across the U.S. — up from just 50 when the protests were first announced Tuesday afternoon.

Find a local event here.

Iran’s missile attacks on two U.S. airbases in Iraq — retaliation that was widely expected and promised by Iranian leaders — brought new urgency to the planned day of action, which will demand that Congress intervene to stop Trump from taking the advice of war-hungry right-wing pundits and launching a devastating war with Iran.

“America, this is an emergency,” said activist Kai Newkirk. “If we spiral into war with Iran, millions could die. We have a short window of time to stop it. We need a massive protest. Everyone, if at all possible, must come out this Thursday, nationwide.”

“We need everyone in the streets,” tweeted Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. “This is a critical time for the American people to be heard.”

In a statement Tuesday night, Indivisible national policy director Angel Padilla said the missile attack by Iran was an “entirely predictable” and “avoidable” consequence of the White House’s hawkish policies toward Iran and urged Congress to “act decisively and fast to stop Trump’s warmongering.”

“Every day we wait is a message from Congress to Trump to continue his march to war,” said Padilla. “We urge the House to immediately pass a strong war powers resolution, as well as the bills offered by Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) that would prevent war with Iran, and urge the Senate to take those critical measures up immediately upon passage.”

“The anti-war majority of Americans will be paying close attention to what their members of Congress do,” added Padilla, “not what they say.”

Truthout Is Preparing to Meet Trump’s Agenda With Resistance at Every Turn

Dear Truthout Community,

If you feel rage, despondency, confusion and deep fear today, you are not alone. We’re feeling it too. We are heartsick. Facing down Trump’s fascist agenda, we are desperately worried about the most vulnerable people among us, including our loved ones and everyone in the Truthout community, and our minds are racing a million miles a minute to try to map out all that needs to be done.

We must give ourselves space to grieve and feel our fear, feel our rage, and keep in the forefront of our mind the stark truth that millions of real human lives are on the line. And simultaneously, we’ve got to get to work, take stock of our resources, and prepare to throw ourselves full force into the movement.

Journalism is a linchpin of that movement. Even as we are reeling, we’re summoning up all the energy we can to face down what’s coming, because we know that one of the sharpest weapons against fascism is publishing the truth.

There are many terrifying planks to the Trump agenda, and we plan to devote ourselves to reporting thoroughly on each one and, crucially, covering the movements resisting them. We also recognize that Trump is a dire threat to journalism itself, and that we must take this seriously from the outset.

Last week, the four of us sat down to have some hard but necessary conversations about Truthout under a Trump presidency. How would we defend our publication from an avalanche of far right lawsuits that seek to bankrupt us? How would we keep our reporters safe if they need to cover outbreaks of political violence, or if they are targeted by authorities? How will we urgently produce the practical analysis, tools and movement coverage that you need right now — breaking through our normal routines to meet a terrifying moment in ways that best serve you?

It will be a tough, scary four years to produce social justice-driven journalism. We need to deliver news, strategy, liberatory ideas, tools and movement-sparking solutions with a force that we never have had to before. And at the same time, we desperately need to protect our ability to do so.

We know this is such a painful moment and donations may understandably be the last thing on your mind. But we must ask for your support, which is needed in a new and urgent way.

We promise we will kick into an even higher gear to give you truthful news that cuts against the disinformation and vitriol and hate and violence. We promise to publish analyses that will serve the needs of the movements we all rely on to survive the next four years, and even build for the future. We promise to be responsive, to recognize you as members of our community with a vital stake and voice in this work.

Please dig deep if you can, but a donation of any amount will be a truly meaningful and tangible action in this cataclysmic historical moment. We are presently looking for 500 new monthly donors in the next 10 days.

We’re with you. Let’s do all we can to move forward together.

With love, rage, and solidarity,

Maya, Negin, Saima, and Ziggy