FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
News from Multiple Organizations
Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Contact: Dana Mohammad, danamo@progressmichigan.org
Coalition of Michigan Leaders Confronts Impacts of Trump’s First 100 Days
Michigan communities unite to demand action on agriculture, immigration, LGBTQ+ rights, environment, and labor protections
LANSING—Today, a number of organizations representing a wide variety of causes and communities came together to spotlight the real-world harm Michiganders have endured during President Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office. Speakers detailed how federal policies have undercut rural infrastructure, stoked fear in immigrant families, eroded constitutional rights, weakened environmental safeguards, and dismantled workplace safety.
Sam Inglot, executive director of Progress Michigan, opened the event by naming what so many across the state are feeling: disillusionment, fear, and fatigue in the face of a MAGA government that seems more interested in consolidating power and protecting corporate interests rather than serving its people. “This administration’s goal is to make all of us afraid. Afraid of each other. Afraid of speaking out. Afraid of standing up. And the solution to fear is community. Together, we are strong.”
“Instead of supporting the people who feed Michigan and America, this administration imposed chaotic tariffs, slashed budgets for the National Weather Service, and jeopardized land-grant research at Michigan State University,” said Bob Thompson, president of the Michigan Farmers Union. “When you undercut rural infrastructure, you hurt entire communities – the teachers, the grocery clerks, the kids who want to stay in the place they call home.”
“Over 700,000 immigrants call Michigan home, yet ICE raids have torn these families apart. More than 200 detentions at the Detroit-Windsor crossing this spring, mostly mixed-status families and children held without legal counsel or basic services, show a system operating in darkness. We must advocate for immigration policies that are humane, just, and ensure the right to fair and legal treatment when individuals’ freedoms are at risk,” said Cindy Gamboa, executive director of MI Poder.
Environmental justice was another major theme. Sean McBrearty, Michigan director of Clean Water Action warned that the Trump administration has already rolled back more than 30 environmental protections and expedited dangerous fossil fuel projects. “Here in Michigan, Trump’s environmental rollbacks have put communities at risk – from attacks on the Clean Water Act and rolling back funding meant to provide safe, clean, and affordable drinking water to Michigan families to the ongoing threat posed by the aging and hazardous Line 5 pipeline under the Great Lakes,” said McBrearty. “Fast-tracking ill-advised plans to build an oil tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac is not just irresponsible, it’s a betrayal of future generations and a betrayal of the Indigenous Tribes that hold Treaty Rights over these lands and waters.”
“We should be building on decades of progress, not sending workers back to when workplace deaths and injuries were treated as the cost of doing business,” said Derek Dobies, chief of staff of the Michigan AFL-CIO. “From gutting OSHA to attacking collective bargaining rights for federal workers, the Trump administration has put profit and power for their billionaire friends before the lives of American workers. We will keep fighting to put workers first.”
Another highlight of the press conference was the Trump administration’s impact on Muslim communities across Michigan, who are once again facing targeted discrimination under travel bans and immigration crackdowns. “From Muslim American families separated at airports to pro-Palestinian student protestors facing visa revocations, it’s clear that the administration is not only undermining civil liberties, it’s also attacking those who dare to dissent,” said Hira Khan, executive director of Emgage Michigan.
Aisha Wells, co-deputy director of Mothering Justice closed the event with a powerful call to protect working families. “If Trump’s cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, and childcare subsidies go through, it would mean leaving families vulnerable, hungry, and drowning in hardship,” Wells said. “Families everywhere deserve a world where basic needs are met and protected. Together, we can make this happen.”
Speakers urged Michigan legislators to protect and expand our rights, freedoms, and access to the resources every community needs to thrive – from clean water and affordable healthcare, to fair wages and a functioning democracy. Legislators must heed these voices and act swiftly to safeguard our farms, families, environment, schools, and workplaces before the next 100 days inflict even greater harm.
Groups that are supportive but not in attendance at the press conference – and are standing in solidarity with their communities and other allied organizations against the chaos and authoritarian overreach of the Trump administration – include Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan and Rising Voices.
The event took place ahead of the Mamas’ March, a protest led by Mothering Justice to demand economic justice for working families, and on the eve of May Day, a historic day of worker solidarity.
You can find the Youtube link to the full press conference by CLICKING HERE.
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