Unions, federal retirees and former government workers gathered at sites around the D.C. region on Monday to rally against cuts to the federal workforce and show support to those on their way to the office.
“We’re just here to say thank you. Just like during the pandemic, where we thank our first responders, we’re thanking our workers at the VA,” said Hasan Solomon, a member of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.
He was joined by dozens of other supporters outside the McPherson Square Metro station, greeting federal workers on their way into nearby government offices, including the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The rally came before other scheduled demonstrations Monday against federal cuts, including one at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, and another at the headquarters for the Department of Interior.
Outside the McPherson Square Metro station, demonstrators wore matching blue shirts and waved signs reading, “Federal workers are Heroes.”
The encouragement was met with nods, some raised fists and, in at least one instance, a hug.
“We need them in these departments, and we’re not going to stand for what the government’s doing currently,” said Cori Horowitz, a member of the machinist union, which also represents workers at the VA and Department of Defense.
“They’re scared of what’s going to happen to them. Are they going to have jobs in the future? It’s just a really uncomfortable and uneasy time for them, and that’s not something we want our members or anyone to feel,” she said.
“Hopefully, we can have a little positivity at a time when there’s a lot of anxiety out there,” said Randy Erwin, president of the National Federation of Federal Employees.
Erwin told WTOP the two unions plan to hold more rallies in the coming weeks at different government agencies.
Fighting Department of Interior cuts
At the Department of the Interior headquarters, about 50 retired employees rallied and chanted through a PA system against proposed cuts to the agency.
The proposal, which would close 164 department offices nationwide, including seven in Virginia and one in Maryland, is drawing sharp criticism from a wide range of experts.
Chanting, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, Elon Musk has got to go,” and “Do your job,” directed at Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, protesters gathered across the street from the sprawling headquarters and took turns reading prepared questions for Burgum.
“Public service is noble, and they’re making us out to be villains,” said event organizer and retired Interior Department legislative counsel Jane Lyder.
“The focus of this event is, ‘Why is he silent?’” she said. “He has an immense responsibility, and he has been completely quiet. He hasn’t said a word.”
In a news release, U.S. House Natural Resources Committee ranking member Rep. Jared Huffman, D-C. A., decried the proposal, saying, “The economic fallout will ripple across America, hitting small towns and cities where federal offices are many communities’ only lifelines.”
Among the proposed cuts are 25 offices of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which represent nearly 30% of the office’s capacity.
Also among the cuts are seven offices in Virginia and one in Maryland, as well as 33 National Park Service facilities.
‘Without NOAA, bad things will happen’
In Silver Spring, Maryland, a large crowd stretched into the East-West Highway outside the headquarters of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The crowd was there to protest layoffs of hundreds of NOAA employees last week, as part of the Trump administration’s reduction of the federal workforce.
Among those to address the crowd was Tom Di Liberto, a climate scientist who said he landed his dream job last year and was 14 days away from no longer being a probationary employee when he was fired.
“We are less safe today than we were last Thursday. Some of the best were fired,” Di Liberto said.
After a career in the Navy, former NOAA Senior Communications Specialist Hendrick Simoes started working with the organization just last year. He too was laid off last week.
“After my military service, I kind of wanted to work for an organization that contributed to the societal good, and NOAA was great. I was super proud,” Simoes said.
Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen said the agency, which oversees the climate, weather and oceans, is essential.
“Without NOAA, bad things will happen to the American people,” Van Hollen said.
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