“I hope they don’t work for the Department of Education,” one Arizona State lawmaker quipped when they saw one of the signs held by protestors at the Capitol on Monday.
The protestors claim to be part of the 50501 Movement and their goal was to hold 50 protests in 50 states on 1 day including the several hundred of them that converged on the Arizona State Capitol.
Although the group’s website says violence will not be tolerated, according to Kim Quintero, spokesperson for the Arizona Senate, Arizona State Troopers and Senate Security were forced to respond to “aggressive behavior displayed by protestors.”
Quintero released the following statement:
This afternoon, the Senate experienced a large presence of protestors outside of the building in anticipation of a bill being heard in committee. DPS and Senate Security have discretion to control the flow of people into the building to maintain the safety of all individuals inside and outside of the premises. DPS and Senate Security exercised this discretion based on aggressive behavior displayed by protestors, including but not limited to, protestors using force at the front doors of the Senate to enter the premises, instead of heeding instructions from law enforcement on safe and orderly entry. As a result, DPS and Senate Security implemented precautionary measures while still allowing as many members of the public to enter the building for public testimony as possible. Prior to the aggressive behavior demonstrated by protestors, there was no limit on Senate building access today., including but not limited to, protestors using force at the front doors of the Senate to enter the premises, instead of heeding instructions from law enforcement on safe and orderly entry. As a result, DPS and Senate Security implemented precautionary measures while still allowing as many members of the public to enter the building for public testimony as possible. Prior to the aggressive behavior demonstrated by protestors, there was no limit on Senate building access today.
It wasn’t just lawmakers who mocked the protesters on Twitter when reporter Brahm Resnick posted a picture of the crowd.
NOW Hundreds gather at Arizona Capitol in Presidents Day protest of Trump & more. pic.twitter.com/MWdQGn6nh5
— Brahm Resnik (@brahmresnik) February 17, 2025
Former Arizona Senatorial candidate, Josh Barnett tweeted in response, “Idiots are protesting, the wasteful spending of our taxpayer money. That’s how brainwashed these fools are that they’re actually sticking up for the corrupt federal government and the corrupt politicians.”
According to the 50501 website, ”The #50501 protests were a decentralized rapid response to the anti-democratic and illegal actions of the Trump administration and its plutocratic allies. The idea—50 protests in 50 states on 1 day—was born on r/50501 and spread rapidly on social media.”