When you watch the news tonight, you will see that there were hundreds of demonstrations across the country, and they were put on by a coalition of many different groups. The groups involved in putting on these demonstrations across the country are the 50501 Movement, MoveON, Indivisable, Women’s March, Black Lives Matter, The Sierra Club, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and The Purpose.

Today’s demonstration in Rock Springs, and most of the other nine demonstrations that took place across the state of Wyoming today, was put on by the 50501 Wyoming group. The 50501 Wyoming group is a bipartisan group made up of both Republicans and Democrats, and it is the Wyoming faction of the national 50501 Movement. 50501 stands for 50 States 50 Protests 1 Movement. I know that there are a lot of people out there saying that this is the Democrats that are holding these demonstrations, but in fact, the person who started the 50501 Wyoming group is a registered Republican. There are a lot of things that have been happening in the state of Wyoming that have many Republicans worried, as well as Democrats, and Independents. 

One of the issues that was being discussed during today’s demonstration was the closure of the Green River Wyoming’s MSHA office, by DOGE, and how that will affect the mining community in this area. The main issues that the members of the 50501 Wyoming group are concerned about are the DOGE cuts to, or elimination of:

• The Wyoming U.S. Geological Survey Office in Cheyenne, WY
• The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department in Lander, WY
• Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration in Cheyenne, WY
• The closure of the Social Security Administration office in Cody, WY
• The Closure of the Mine Safety Health Administration (MSHA) office in Green River, WY
• The Office of U.S. Attorneys in Lander, WY
• The funding freeze of Wyoming’s Local Food Purchase Assistance (LFPA) program, and the Local Food for Schools program, as well as the $535,000 in DOGE cuts to the Food Bank of Wyoming, which is particularly concerning because food insecurity need in Wyoming is at its highest level in 10 years.
• DOGE firings of Wyoming State Parks employees
• DOGE firings of National Park Service employees
• DOGE elimination of 60,000 to 80,000 jobs at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
• The DOGE firings of so many Wyoming U.S. Forest Service employees, on Feb.14, 2025, that they referred to it as “the Valentine’s Day Massacre”
• DOGE firings of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees, and the elimination of the Fish and Wildlife’s tribal Lander, WY office
• DOGE cuts to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which affects Wyoming farmers
• DOGE firings of 30 or more full-time staff at the Bridger-Teton National Forest
• DOGE firings of 20% of permanent workers at the Shoshone National Forest  

This is not a complete list of all the cuts or office closures that Elon Musk and his DOGE team have made in Wyoming, and it’s not a complete list of all the cuts and closures that happened across the country. These are just some of the many issues that the people in the 50501 Wyoming group are the most concerned with when it comes to the illegal cuts that DOGE has been making. The 50501 Wyoming group is very concerned that the goal of Elon Musk, and DOGE does not seem to be the elimination of wasteful spending, like they claim, but instead its goal seems to be to eliminate federal employees, federal offices, federal aid for those in need, and eventually the entire federal government. 

There is also a long list of other issues, not related to DOGE, that our members, the citizens of Wyoming, and people all across the country are worried about. Things like our lack of national security, the war against education, the lack of funding for special education, people who immigrated to the United States LEGALLY being treated like criminals, LGBTQ+ rights, Women’s rights, Civil Rights, the protection of Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare, the war in Isreal and the Gaza Strip, the war in Russia and Ukraine, Trump’s threats to take over the Panama Canal, Canada & Greenland (which could get us into a war), Trump’s trade war with every single country on the planet, the stock market tanking along with our 401Ks, how Trump’s tariffs are going to make the cost of everything go up for years to come, and much, much more! 

Overall today’s protest was very peaceful, there were very few problems, and we received a lot of supportive honks and waves as people drove by, cheering us on. We are so proud to live in a country where we have a first amendment that gives us freedom of religion, freedom of the press, free speech, the right to petition our government, and last but not least, the freedom to assemble peacefully. It warmed my heart today to see so many Rock Springs residents, about 100 or so, exercising their first amendment rights. 

For those of you who like to spread the false rumors that we are all paid by some imaginary billionaire, and that we are being bused in from out of state, you should know that I was born right here, in Rock Springs, in the old hospital at the top of C Street. I was raised in Rock Springs, and I have lived here my entire life. And most of the faces that I saw out there today, at the demonstration, were people I have known my whole life. There were both Republicans and Democrats there, and I’m sure a few Independents sprinkled in as well. They senior citizens, young Gen Z’s, and Gen Xers like me! They were all people who love and care deeply about the state of Wyoming, and Sweetwater County. I would like to think that, whether we agree or disagree, we can all respect each other’s first amendment rights to peacefully assemble when there are things happening in this country that we do not agree with. Peace! 

Sincerely,
50501 Wyoming – Rock Springs Volunteer Representative
Julie Smith