“Hands off” was the message shared by hundreds in Champaign calling on the federal government to halt funding cuts to essential services across the U.S. 

Hundreds of people protested at West Side Park on April 5, calling for various programs to be preserved amidst President Trump’s proposed cuts to social security, health care and more.

“Uphold the constitution.”

“They can’t disappear us all.”

“The power of the people is stronger than the people in power.”

These are some of the messages seen across the crowd that day. Speakers at the event emphasized protecting people’s access to health care and called out the Trump administration’s actions.

Others called out the administration for its governance, saying “hands off our democracy” and “there is no pride in funding genocide.”

Jeff Dougan, a co-organizer for the grassroots organization Champaign County Indivisible and speaker at the protest, criticized the Trump administration.

“The actions the President and his allies have been taking seem to be fueled by the fact that they — and they alone — are the people who get to decide what it means for somebody to be an American. And that is not how this country works,” Dougan said in an interview.

Julie Pryde, public health administrator for the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, spoke about concerns over public health services and access to care.

“It’s important that people wake up and understand what’s going on and rise up before it’s too late,” Pryde said in an interview. “This is just the very beginning and I hope people join with us to get things back to where they want [them] to be.”

Pryde said public health services improve quality of life and that people didn’t vote to take that away from anyone.

“I don’t think people voted to have their health care, their wellness, their life expectancy, these programs and services that have made their lives better — I don’t think they’re voting to take that away from themselves or other people.”