This story has been updated to correct the names of the rally’s organizers.
LAKELAND — For third time in less than two months, critics of President Donald Trump and Elon Musk gathered in Polk County to voice alarm at the president’s policies.
Saturday afternoon’s rally in Munn Park was the largest yet. Protesters braved near-record heat to occupy the north end of the park, carrying signs that were a mixture of printed banners with the “Hands Off!” logo and homemade posters bearing such messages as “Only you can prevent fascism” and “DOGE hurts veterans.”
DOGE, or the Department of Government Efficiency, is the group led by Musk that Trump assigned to curb federal spending, leading to a spate of layoffs and the dismantling of some government agencies.
Organizers expected more than 1,000 people at the rally. It was part of a nationwide network of demonstrations planned under the name “Hands Off!” More than 150 groups planned the rallies, The Associated Press reported, including civil rights organizations, labor unions, LBGTQ+ advocates, veterans and elections activists.
Protests were scheduled for the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and at state capitols and in smaller cities in every state.
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Indivisible Polk, Indivisible on the Ridge and Defund Oligarchy Blessed by Liberty organized the Lakeland rally. Speakers included Veysel Dokur, leader of Indivisible Polk.
Speakers led the audience in a series of chants to start the rally. One speaker called out a series of subjects, such as Social Security and immigrants, to which the crowd responded, “Hands off!”
A speaker warned rallygoers to avoid engaging with any counter-protesters they might encounter. He warned against talking to unknown or hostile interviewers.
No opposing demonstrators made obvious appearances in the early stages of the rally. A group of Lakeland police officers positioned themselves at the south end of Munn Park.
A first rally took place in Central Park in Winter Haven in February, drawing about 200 protesters. That event was part of the 50501 movement.
Demonstrators gathered outside the Lakeland office of Rep. Scott Franklin, R.-Lakeland, in early March, again criticizing Trump’s policies and his appointment of Musk to slash federal spending.
Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Hundreds protest Trump’s policies during “Hands Off!” rally at Munn Park in Lakeland
Reporting by Gary White, Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger
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