What to Know
- Thousands of people were marching in the streets of New York City to protest President-elect Donald Trump
- They gathered in front of Trump Tower by Wednesday night, where police were prepared with extra officers and barricades
- Trump was beaten by Clinton in every borough except Staten Island on Election Day
Thousands of people marched in the streets of New York City Wednesday night to protest President-elect Donald Trump, weaving through traffic in midtown to get to Trump Tower, where police braced for the crowds.
Hundreds of protesters began gathering in Union Square by 6 p.m., despite light rain. They chanted "Not my president" and "hey, hey, ho, ho Donald Trump has got to go," and held signs that read "Trump Makes America Hate" and "Don't Lose Hope."
They then began marching more than 40 blocks uptown to picket outside Trump Tower in midtown.
"America has not voted for Donald Trump's policies, which don't exist," said Jesse Levine. "They voted for sexism, racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, misogyny."
"I'm concerned for the immigrants in this country, I'm concerned for the black and Muslim peple," said Zoe Beloff.
At least 65 people were arrested at the Columbus Circle and Trump Tower demonstrations, according to police. The majority of arrests were for disorderly conduct or resisting arrest.
Teacher Julia Dunn told NBC 4 New York, "On the subway ride here, everyone was just extremely tense and there was this crazy air -- so dark -- and if that's the result of our presidential election, something has to happen," she added.
Video: pic.twitter.com/9pEzWoc0fx
— Maddow Blog (@MaddowBlog) November 10, 2016
A separate Columbus Circle demonstration, meanwhile, was hosted by the anti-racism group Answer Coalition. That event started at 5:30 p.m., and there were chants of "Donald Trump, go away, racist, sexist, anti-gay." They also marched to Trump Tower, where police were putting up barricades as they braced for demonstrators.
As they weaved through the streets of midtown to get to Trump Tower at 57th Street and Fifth Avenue, protesters faced threats of arrest from NYPD for blocking vehicular traffic.
Buses and trucks got jammed at the intersection as the crowds kept swelling. Police helped vehicles maneuver U-turns. Driver Joe Herrera said he had been stuck in traffic there for an hour.
The chaos also kept visitors from their hotels. Steve Dumerve, a visitor from Pennsylvania, was supposed to stay at Trump Tower.
"We have reservations but it's not happening tonight, so we need a plan B," said Dumerve.
"It's just crazy to see all these people in this uproar over our next new president," said Jay Gerdes, also visiting from Pennsylvania.
Fellow New Yorkers watched the protests, and many who live in the area said they didn't mind the slowdown of their walk and nighttime commute home.
"We're a free nation. These people are not happy so they have the right to express their unhappiness," said Margarita Krip of midtown Manhattan.
The Facebook events for demonstrations in Union Square and Columbus Circle were created on Wednesday morning, with more than 10,000 Facebook users responding that they would be present at the protests.
Similar anti-Trump protests were being held in other American cities Wednesday, including Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington and Boston.
There was also at least one instance of election-related vandalism in the city on Wednesday. Someone appeared to have written the words "I will kill you Trump" on a subway train window, though it's not clear when the vandal wrote the message.
The NYPD said officers responded to the location, but the vandalism had been removed by the time they arrived on scene.
Despite spending his entire life in New York City, Trump was not a popular choice in the Big Apple on Election Day. He was beaten by Clinton in every borough except Staten Island. He also lost the popular vote statewide by nearly a 2-to-1 margin.
