Protests of the Donald Trump presidential campaign, 2016

Protests have been a notable feature of the 2016 presidential campaign of Donald Trump. Led by activists who organized demonstrations inside Trump rallies, sometimes with calls to shut Trump down, and fueled by perceived incendiary language used by Trump, protesters began attending his rallies displaying signs and disrupting proceedings. On March 11, 2016, a protest in Chicago resulted in the cancellation of the event being held there after hundreds of protesters entered the arena. Protesters: Some protesters were part of organized groups such as Black Lives Matter. They sometimes attempt to enter the venue or engage in activities outside the venue. Interactions with supporters of the candidate may occur before, during, or after the event. Protesters have attempted to rush the stage at Trump's rallies. One protester, 37-year-old Paul Horner, told ABC News that he was paid $3,500 by a group called 'Women Are The Future' to "protest Donald Trump's rally in Fountain Hills." Incidents: On December 4, 2015, a Trump rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, was interrupted successively by different protesters ten times. After the tenth interruption, Trump ended the event. The protest was organized via Facebook shortly after the event was announced. Twenty-five protesters were removed from an event attended by over 7,000 people. Planning: MoveOn.org, People for Bernie, the Muslim Student Association, Assata's Daughters, the Black Student Union, Fearless Undocumented Alliance, and Black Lives Matter are among the organizations who sponsored or promoted the protests at the March 11 Chicago Trump rally. Altercations: There have been verbal and physical confrontations between Trump supporters and protesters at Trump's campaign events. Language used by Trump: Trump was criticized by some of creating aggressive undertones at his rallies. Trump's Republican rivals have blamed Trump for fostering a climate of violence and escalating tension at campaign events. Trump himself did not condemn the acts of violence that occurred at many of his rallies, and encouraged it in some cases. In November 2015, Trump said of a protester in Birmingham, Alabama, "Maybe he should have been roughed up, because it was absolutely disgusting what he was doing." In December, the campaign urged attendees not to harm protesters, but rather to alert law enforcement officers of them by holding signs above their head and yelling "Trump! Trump! Trump!". Trump has been criticized for additional instances of fomenting an atmosphere conducive to violence through many of his comments. For example, Trump told a crowd in Cedar Rapids, Iowa that he would pay their legal fees if they engaged a protester. On February 23, 2016, when a protester was ejected from a rally in Las Vegas, Trump stated, "I love the old days—you know what they used to do to guys like that when they were in a place like this? They'd be carried out on a stretcher, folks." He added, "I'd like to punch him in the face." Timeline: Protests against Trump primarily began following Trump's announcement of his candidacy, especially after stating that Mexican migrants were "bringing drugs, bringing crime, they're rapists". The protests proceeded through the rest of 2015 and into 2016. 2015: June- June 16 – Trump holds controversial announcement of his candidacy for President of the United States. June 25 – Univision cuts ties to Trump and announces it would not run the Miss USA pageant. Reggaeton singer J Balvin also cancels his future show at the Miss USA event that was to be held July. June 29 – At a luncheon in Chicago, about 100 protesters gathered across from the City Club of Chicago to demonstrate. June 30 – NBC and Televisa announce that they are no longer involved with Donald Trump. NBC states that their business partnerships were cancelled due to Trump's "derogatory statements ... regarding immigrants" and that they would "no longer air the annual Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants". July- July 1 – Clothing retailer Macy's announces that it had cut ties with Trump.[47] Mattress company Serta releases a statement that the company "values diversity and does not agree with nor endorse the recent statements made by Mr. Trump" further saying their business relationship with Trump was over. July 6 – ESPN, the Professional Golfers' Association of America and the United States Golf Association announced that they would no longer hold their events at the Trump National Golf Club in Los Angeles in 2015. July 7 – Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation, a clothing producer that made Trump's brand of clothing, announces that it would begin to cease production of Trump's brand. July 9 – In Washington, D.C., a group of protesters gathered outside of the future Trump International Hotel Washington D.C. to demonstrate and "call for a worldwide boycott of Trump properties and TV shows". July 10 – While Trump spoke at a Friends of Abe gathering, about 150 protesters gathered with signs and hitting piñatas made in the image of Trump. A smaller group of Trump supporters gathered near the protests as well causing tension with one Trump supporter beginning to jab at protesters. July 12 – Protesters interrupt Trump at a speech in Phoenix, Arizona with a large sign and were later escorted out while Trump supporters chanted "U-S-A!". July 23 – Trump arrives in Laredo, Texas and is greeted by protesters while others gathered in support. August- August 11 – About 150 protesters gathered in Birch Run, Michigan outside of a rally at the Birch Run Expo Center, gathered by the Democratic Party of Michigan due to what they called "anti-immigrant, anti-veteran statements" made by Donald Trump. August 25 - During an August 25, 2015, press conference, Univision anchor Jorge Ramos began to question Trump since before being called on. After being told "Sit down! you weren't called" and "Go back to Univision", Ramos continued to protest Trump's plan to deport illegal immigrants and their children born into citizenship in the United States. Trump motioned to his security with Keith Schiller removing Ramos from the event. Trump later meet one on one with Ramos. September- September 3 – Trump's chief of security Keith Schiller, was filmed punching a protester. October: October 14 – In Richmond, Virginia, several clashes broke out between protesters and Trump supporters. November- November 7 – Over 200 protesters, many of them Latino, demonstrate outside of 30 Rockefeller Plaza where Trump was hosting Saturday Night Live. December- December 4 – After being interrupted ten times during a speech in Raleigh, North Carolina, Trump ends his rally. December 12 – Many protesters heckle Trump during rally in Aiken, South Carolina. December 22 – Trump's speech is interrupted more than ten times at a rally in Grand Rapids, MI with dozens of protesters being ejected. Trump characterised the protesters as "drugged out", antagonized them by calling them "so weak" for not fighting security" and asked protesters why they interrupt him "in a group of 9,000 maniacs that want to kill them". 2016: January- January 4 – Protesters interrupted Trump several times in Lowell, Massachusetts, with some chanting support for Bernie Sanders and the Black Lives Matter movement. January 8 – During Trump's visit to Burlington, VT, about 700 protesters demonstrated in the City Hall Park. February- February 27 – In Valdosta, Georgia, 30 Valdosta State University students were asked to leave a college venue leased by the Trump campaign for a speech. March- March 1 – Kashiya Nwanguma attended a Trump rally in Louisville, Kentucky, with two anti-Trump signs. She reported that Trump supporters ripped her signs away, and shouted insults at her. March 10 – As Trump was being led by police from a rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina, a protester was punched by a Trump supporter. Charges of assault and battery have been filed by the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office. March 11 – During a rally in St. Louis at which Trump was "repeatedly interrupted by protesters, violence broke out between supporters of Trump and protesters, resulting in 32 arrests. A planned event for later that day in Chicago drew confrontations between supporters and protesters in the arena at the University of Illinois at Chicago before Trump could come out to speak, due to an unusually large amount of protesters, and the campaign cancelled the rally due to safety concerns. Trump stated that he made the decision himself, commenting, "I didn't want to see people get hurt so I decided to postpone the rally." March 12 – Thomas Dimassimo, a 32-year-old man, attempted to rush the stage as Trump was speaking at a rally in Dayton, Ohio. Dimassimo was stopped by Secret Service agents and subsequently charged with misdemeanor, disorderly conduct and inducing panic. March 18 – Between 500 and 600 people engaged in a stand-off outside of a rally in Salt Lake City, Utah. Police officers formed a human barricade to separate the two groups, whom largely remained non-violent. Towards the end of the rally, protesters tore down a security tent at a Trump rally in Utah and threw rocks at rally attendees as they left. Two unsuccessfully attempted to breach the entrance of the venue. Secret Service officers secured the inside of the venue and roughly 40 police officers in riot gear repelled the protesters from entering the building. No arrests were made. March 19 – Thousands of anti-Trump protesters in New York chanted "F*ck Trump!" and "Donald Trump! Go away!" as they rallied around the Trump International Tower building near 60th St. and Columbus Circle. The group was followed by dozens of NYPD officers who lined the streets with metal barricades and blocked the protesters path as they tried to cross busy intersections. After violence broke out, police pepper-sprayed the crowd, whom police refused to let cross the street. At a simultaneous protest, protesters blocked a highway leading to Trump's Fountain Hills, Arizona rally, leading to three arrests. During a separate rally in Tucson, Arizona later that night, a black Trump supporter was arrested after punching and stomping a white protester who had donned a KKK hood. April- April 14 – Hundreds of protesters gathered in a New York City Hyatt hotel against the wishes of the hotel staff. April 24 – Sean Morkys, a 20-year-old man, was arrested and charged for threatening to bomb a Trump rally in Bridgeport, Connecticut. April 26 – Clashes between Trump supporters protesting an anti-Trump resolution and anti-Trump protesters in Anaheim resulted in 5 Trump supporters including 2 girls being pepper sprayed. April 28 – Several hundred protestors in Costa Mesa, California clashed with police and Trump supporters outside the OC Fair & Event Center where Trump was holding a rally, resulting in 17 arrests and damage to five police cars. April 29 – Around 1,000 to 3,000 protested in the area surrounding Burlingame, California where Trump was to give a speech at the California GOP convention. Protesters rushed security gates at one point and were seen harassing Trump supporters. Activists blocked a main intersection outside the event and vandalized a police car. Eventually the police restored order in the area. For safety reasons Trump himself was forced to climb over a wall and enter through a back entrance of the venue. Security: Three types of security forces are generally present at Trump campaign events: United States Secret Service agents responsible for Trump's safety; local, or state, law enforcement officers responsible for the safety of everyone present; and private security details hired by Trump or by the venue. When a venue is rented by the campaign, the rally is a private event and the campaign may grant or deny entry to it with no reason given; the only stipulation is that exclusion solely on the basis of race is forbidden. Those who enter or remain inside such a venue without permission are technically guilty of or liable for trespass. Attendees or the press can be assigned or restricted to particular areas in the venue. In March 2016, Politico reported that the Trump campaign had hired plainclothes private security guards to preemptively remove potential protesters from rallies.