50501’s Protests Were Powerful

But We Can’t Fight White Supremacy With Its Own Tools

By Vix Burgett-Prunty

I'll never forget the energy of the 50501 protests. Thousands flooded the streets against Trump and Musk's attacks. For the first time in years, I saw people who looked like me not just showing up, but outfighting for justice. That collective power was electric. Healing. And it proved what we've always known: We're unstoppable when we fight boldly.But momentum isn't enough. To win, we must confront the contradictions holding us back.

To the 50501 organizers: I see you fighting Trump. I see you fighting Musk. But ask yourselves: What are you really fighting? These men didn't invent white supremacy, they're its flashiest salesmen. And when you:

• Invite police to "monitor" protests

• Prioritize barricades over disruption

• Police fellow activists' tactics

You're enforcing the very system you claim to oppose.

The cops you welcome? They're the ones who:

• Brutalized BLM protesters in 2020 (1,000+ incidents The Guardian

• Clear homeless camps for Musk's factories The Intercept

• Enforced Trump's family separations ACLU

This isn't about blame. It's about coherence. You can't dismantle oppression using its own tools.

How We Win Without Police

Movements worldwide show alternatives:

UAW Local 12's Playbook (2023):

When Stellantis resisted demands, Toledo workers:

• Organized "work-to-rule" slowdowns costing $2M/day The Toledo Blade

• Mobilized 300+ neighbors to block scab trucks for 72 hours

• Live-streamed management meltdowns to control the narrative

This is strategic escalation. Imagine applying this to Musk's warehouses.

Community Security Models

• Tear gas response & burn treatment

• Critical protest first aid Full Handbook see above

• Mutual aid camps (Stop Cop City)

• Legal observer networks (NLG)

Labor-Protest Solidarity

• Chicago Teachers Union struck for racial justice in 2022

• UPS Teamsters organized "flying pickets" in 2023

• Unionized public bus drivers in Minneapolis are refusing to aid police in transporting arrested protesters to jail, in a show of solidarity.

Your Action Toolkit

• Police-Free Security

• Protest Safety Training

• Street Medic Courses

• Anti-Repression Zines

Disruption Tactics

• UAW Strike Manual

• EWOC Workplace Organizing

• Strike Debt Mutual Aid Tools

Study the Masters

• No Fascist USA! (Haymarket Books)

• Find Your Local DSA

• IWW Organizer Training

The Challenge

50501, you've shown we can fill streets. Now let's:

1. Replace police with community peacekeepers

2. Partner with unions to hit capitalist weak points

3. Escalate strategical like UAW Local 12

The tools exist. The models work. What's your move?

In solidarity,

Vix Burgett-Prunty

EAGER Community