May 2025 ~ Permanent Revolution

May Day 2025

May Day in 2025 saw over 1000 May Day rallies and marches in the United States, a number unprecedented in recent years. There is no estimate yet of how many people participated but judging from the turnout in downtown New York, which some people estimated to be at least 10,000, the total must have been in the hundreds of thousands. 5051, the loose organization of volunteers behind many of the rallies said that 600,000 volunteers had signed up for May Day. There were also demonstrations throughout the world on this May Day.

Paris

Turin

Berlin

Istanbul

Los Angeles

Manila

I went down to the May Day rally in downtown Manhattan, in front of Foley Square. I was last here for a political event two years ago when Donald Trump was on trial in Civil Court. Trump was also featured prominently in today’s rally, but otherwise the two events were like night and day. In 2023 there was an atmosphere of celebration that gripped the crowd who came down hoping to see the then former President being humbled by the judicial system he tried to overthrow. The only problem was that he was not being indicted for his orchestration of the attempted coup of Jan. 6 but instead on a very tenuous legal case cooked up by his Democratic Party opponents. While there was never any question that Trump engaged in fraudulent business practices and paid hush money to cover up an affair with a porn star, the case was expanded for political reasons and Trump was eventually convicted on 34 felony counts. But it turned out to be a Pyrrhic victory.

Now move forward to May 1 2025, and while Trump is once more the number one target of the demonstrators, hardly anyone now remembers the 2023 legal case. He is now, once again, ‘President Trump’, and his actions in his first 100 days since retaking power have unleashed a broad and growing and determined resistance movement. These crowds are not celebrating but are expressing their anger. Unlike 2023, there is an awareness among the demonstrators that we are living through a historic turning point in the history of the American Republic, one that could spell the end of its 250 years of existence. That being said there is also a great deal of confusion about what must be done to defend democracy, the working class, immigrants, the public institutions of health, the arts and culture against the unprecedented assault emanating from Trump. Nevertheless, the large and energetic turnout on May Day provides us with grounds for optimism about the outcome of the battle.

Here are some photos of the event in New York.

Here is the transcript of an interview I conducted with one of the participants, Alex L:

Alex L.

[AS] Hi. Could you, tell us a little bit about yourself and why you're here?

[AL] Sure. My name is Alex L. I'm here, with the, Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys, which is UAW local 2325. And, I'm here because it's International Workers' Day, and we're turning out to support unionized workers of all kinds.

[AS] Have you participated in May Day activities in previous years? And what about your union?

[AL] I have. Our union has turned out for May Day, in previous years, but, honestly, I think this year is probably the biggest turnout of all, and it also feels like the most urgent time to be in the streets.

[AS] What do you know about the history of May Day?

[AL] Well, I know a little bit. I know it dates back to, the late eighteen hundreds and, some of the violent clashes between, police and workers, particularly, in Chicago.

[AS] Well, you know, it was about the eight-hour day.

[AL] Eight-hour day. Exactly. Then we have unions to thank for that.

[AS] And do you also know that it was widely celebrated as the holiday of the socialist movement, not just the workers' movement?

[AL] Yes. Right, exactly.

[AS] What do you think about the idea of socialism today? Do you think it's still relevant?

[AL] Well, I think there's a place for socialist thinking. You know, I myself have never, been affiliated with any actually, socialist organizations, but I have a great deal of sympathy for, the emphasis that they place on human welfare, over profits, and, you know, decentralized decision-making, which I think is really essential if we're going to take care of everybody. We need that kind of outlook.

[AS] And where do you see the current situation in the United States, namely the threat to democracy?

[AL] Well, it's certainly under attack right now. There's no doubt about it. I think not just this country, but a lot of countries around the world are undergoing a dangerous shift toward authoritarianism. But, days like this remind us that there are plenty of people who are, up in arms about it. We're not going to just let it happen quietly. We're going to push back. And so, you know, being an optimist, I believe that we will push the pendulum back. It's going to take a lot of struggle, and it's going to take some time.

[AS] And how do you envision that struggle?

[AL] Well, I think it's going be a lot of non-violent demonstration like this. It's going to be a lot of organizing, exercising electoral power. It's going to require boycotts, economic actions. It's really going to require a wide range of things to show that the status quo, if you're in business as usual, are just not as helpful anymore.