Anti-Trump Protesters Pepper-Sprayed in DC

Michael Moore leads NYC protest
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 20, 2017 2:00 AM CST
Anti-Trump Protesters Pepper-Sprayed in DC
People hold signs of "No!" as they listen to speakers at an anti-Trump rally and protest hosted by filmmaker Michael Moore in front of the Trump International Hotel on Thursday in New York.   (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

The anti-Donald Trump protests kicked off as the inaugural events began Thursday night, with at least one protester arrested after a rally near Trump supporters' "DeploraBall" event at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. NBC Washington reports that police used pepper spray as they clashed with protesters, some of whom let off smoke bombs and burned Trump merchandise in the street. Protesters chanted "Nazi scum" at DeploraBall attendees, threw trash, and projected slogans including "Impeach the Predatory President" onto the Press Club building, the Washington Post reports.

Earlier in the evening, Michael Moore led a protest outside the Trump International Hotel in New York, with speeches from Mayor Bill de Blasio, Robert De Niro, and Alec Baldwin, among others, the Hill reports. "With a lot of work on our part, we will stop this man," Moore promised, calling Trump a "sociopath" who "will not last four years." Authorities say they have plans in place to keep pro- and anti-Trump groups separate during Friday's events. The Bikers for Trump group says it's ready to step in if protesters try to block access to the National Mall during Trump's inauguration. "We're going to be backing up law enforcement. We're on the same page," one of the group's organizers tells Reuters. (More Donald Trump stories.)

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