Seattle Tax March: Thousands Protest, Demand Trump's Returns

SEATTLE, WA - Thousands of people descended on downtown Seattle Saturday to take part in Tax Day protest marches. There were two separate marches held in the city Saturday, although both were focused on demanding that President Donald Trump release his tax returns. The first protest kicked off at 10 a.m. in front of the Internal Revenue Service offices along 2nd Avenue; the second protest, which got underway around 2 p.m., was organized by local Black Lives Matter activists.

The first protest began with a series of speeches from local politicians and activists. U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Seattle, ended her speech by telling the crowd of about 2,000 that Donald Trump's assertion that "only reporters" care about his tax returns is "fake news."

Meanwhile nearby, someone brought a large inflatable chicken with a Trump-like hair-do and features.

Trump has said that he can't release his tax returns because the IRS is auditing him. He said during the 2016 campaign that he would release them once the audits were over. But once he was elected, Trump backtracked, saying that no one cares about his returns except the media.

Across both protests, marchers said that Trump's lack of transparency about his wealth is concerning. The Black Lives Matter protest later in the day highlighted that Washington state has the most regressive tax system in the U.S.

Both protests were largely peaceful, although police were on hand to contain marchers and direct traffic. There was about 2,000 people at the first march, which traveled from 2nd and Marion Street to the Seattle Center. The Black Lives Matter protest was about double the size of the first march, stretching about four city blocks at one point.

When the first march reached the Seattle Center, protesters encountered pictures of Trump and Pepe the Frog - the mascot of the alt-right - plastered on utility poles.

The Black Lives Matter protest kicked off with a few brief speeches and a musical performance. Sheley Secrest, vice president of the Seattle NAACP chapter, used the rally to remind the crowd that she's running for a seat on the Seattle City Council.

Images via Patch.com