On Tuesday, Oct. 2, President Donald Trump visited Philadelphia. His appearance prompted demonstrations, created traffic and inspired many interesting protest signs. President Trump’s speech was held at the Pennsylvania Convention Center during the “National Electrical contractors Association’s” annual gathering.
Trump spoke for approximately 40 minutes in front of a crowd of about 6,000 electrical contractors, electricians and apprentices from across the country. Trump explained how our country has never been better and is “respected against like we have not been respected in decades.”
Around 2 p.m. on the east side of City Hall, Trump supporters began chanting, “get a job,” to protesters. Then, as Trump’s speech wrapped up and attendees flooded the streets, more standoffs occurred and traffic began to build up.
Shea Neary, a freshman undeclared major, said, “Our country is currently divided and it’s sad to see, especially in the area we live in.”
President Donald Trump highlighted what he calls an “economic revival.” Trump said Tuesday that the stock market has hit more than 100 record highs since he was sworn into office and that it will soon be announced that the country has created more than 640,000 manufacturing jobs since January.
“Abraham Lincoln had it right when he said,’United we stand divided we fall,'” Matt Mccuen, sophomore political science major, said.
Protesters marched in the streets chanting against fascism and about the development around the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh.
Kurt Schuehler, a sophomore undeclared major, said, “Politics have changed this country, we need to figure out a solution that will unite this country again so we can continue to run united as one.”
Protesters went as far as using the Philadelphia flyers mascot, “Gritty,” as sign of protest. Many even comparing Gritty to the president saying, “We don’t need another orange person.”
Lauren Buck, a sophomore elementary and special education major, said, “It will be interesting to see the direction our country goes in as Trump continues to lead our country.”
Besides President Trump’s speech, the rest of the day included a speech by former Eagles long snapper, Jon Dorenbos, and a performance by classic rock band Foreigner. When it was all said and done, most people were more concerned about the traffic than the protests.
As President Trump continues to give speeches across the country, we can expect more protests to continue but protesters say their ultimate chance to be heard comes Nov. 6 during the midterm elections.
