Protesters gathered outside the Benton County Courthouse on May 1, and again on May 3 to protest actions by the Trump administration.

On Thursday, protesters gathered for May Day, a national protest which according to Erik Swartzendruber, a member of Showing Up for Racial Justice, is committed to supporting workers, immigrants and other vulnerable people being scapegoated.

Swartzendruber explained that scapegoating is used as a political tool that pits people against each other for the sake of division. 

SURJ, according to Swartzendruber, has hundreds of thousands of circles nationwide, and is geared towards mobilizing white people against racism. Swartzendruber said those interested should visit SURJ’s website.

“I don’t think of this rally as anti-anybody,” Swartzendruber said. “It’s really just solidarity, together.”

Also present at the protest with SURJ was Justin Soares, standing through the sunroof of his Volkswagen bus adorned with paintings done by his daughter. Soares expressed support for workers, regardless of their citizenship status.

“We’re here supporting all workers, documented and undocumented,” Soares said. “The people who really support our country, not the oligarchs.”

Gallery • 11 Photos

Chase Schurr

A paper mache orca sits outside the Benton County Courthouse May 3. Protesters ran up and down Second Street with the orca.

The organization Indivisible had a tent set up at the protest, and again on May 3. According to Maria Faria, who helped resurrect the local Corvallis chapter, Indivisible consists of over 2,000 groups nationwide, and was formed in 2017 after President Donald Trump’s first election, in part by former staffers of Congress.

Indivisible advocates for voter engagement, and campaigns for candidates and legislation that supports topics including the environment, medicare, the LGBTQIA+ community, and immigrants, Faria said, directing those interested to the Benton County chapter’s website, Facebook page, Instagram, subreddit and the organization platform Mobilize.

Faria is herself an immigrant, and obtained citizenship as a result of getting her PhD from Ohio State University. Faria noted that her process to citizenship was smoother than most, and that many immigrants are fleeing violence.

“I had an easy route. Those people don’t. Those people are running,” Faria said, “It took me six years. Can they wait six years?”

Faria said that the targeting of immigrants by the Trump administration has a motive rooted in animosity, “His base is xenophobic, and convinced that if they don’t have a job, it’s because of immigrants.”

According to Faria, Indivisible will return to Benton County Courthouse June 14 for the “No Kings” protest on Flag Day, which is President Donald Trump’s birthday, and is the day Trump plans to hold a military parade in Washington D.C.

Present at the May 3 protest was the grassroots organization Red Wine & Blue Trouble Nation, who were gathering donations for the South Corvallis Food Bank. According to member Anne Tanner, the group plans to collect donations at future protests.

Tanner noted the essential impact of food donations.

“That’s what keeps a community healthy, it’s a human right,” Tanner said. “It’s not about charity, it’s about community.”

Also present Saturday were the Friends of the EPA, a local group advocating for the protection of the Environmental Protection Agency, which has seen significant cuts from the Trump administration.

Members Lisandra Trine and Patti Meeks, both employees of the EPA, cited low morale in the organization and expressed firsthand concern for the present and future state of science research.

“Personally speaking, I’m really concerned about students who want to go into the sciences,” Meeks said, noting that the cuts to research funding would likely lead to science research moving to outside the United States.

“The rest of the world used to come here for science education,” Meeks said. “It’s going to export our students.”

Trine stated that an assistant professor at the University of Mississippi, after receiving funding for cancer research, had their funding promptly revoked through the National Institutes of Health.

“Hours, days, weeks applying for funding,” Trine said. “It’s not just us. All science researchers are affected.”

Trine also expressed concern for the world that would be left behind for her son, who was present at the protest, “What’s the world going to be like for him?”

Trine and Meeks directed those interested in learning more or getting involved to visit Friends of the EPA’s website.