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“Not my president”: Thousands protest Trump’s unexpected victory

Tens of thousands of people across the U.S. took to the streets Wednesday in protest of Donald Trump’s election victory Tuesday night. Protesters targeted buildings owned by the president-elect – burning effigies, setting flags on fire, and chanting “Not my president!”

Sparked by Trump’s unexpected victory on election night, impromptu demonstrations took place in cities including New York, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Oakland, Seattle, Portland, and Washington, D.C.

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The protests were largely peaceful but strongly criticized Trump’s campaign rhetoric – language that many felt promoted racism, xenophobia, and misogyny. Chants reportedly heard included:

  • “Not my president”
  • “She got more votes”
  • “No Trump! No KKK! No racist USA!”
  • “Impeach Donald Trump”
  • “Hands off my pussy.”

Though most of the protests were peaceful, one notorious Trump supporter urged confrontation. David Duke, a former leader in the Ku Klux Klan, urged people to confront the “filth in our streets.”

Here is what been happened around the country last night.

Washington D.C.

Crowds gathered outside the White House before marching to the newly opened Trump International Hotel where protesters set a U.S. flag on fire according to NBC Washington.

Los Angeles

A group marched on City Hall, where they torched a giant effigy of Trump’s head. Some protesters spilled onto a busy freeway, blocking traffic and causing a major tailback, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Seattle

An estimated 2,000 people joined a peaceful march organized by the Socialist Alternative Seattle group. Five people were injured, two critically, in a shooting in downtown Seattle on Wednesday night, but despite initial reports, police say it was unrelated to the protests.

Chicago

Protesters gathered outside the Trump Tower there, shouting “our bodies, our choice!”

Other demonstrations and walkouts took place at schools and universities across America: