Large crowds of people fearful and furious over the way President Donald Trump has been slashing federal jobs and programs and roiling the financial markets gathered in cities around Southern California and nationwide on Saturday to demand that Trump and billionaire advisor Elon Musk keep their “hands off” many of the services that all types of Americans rely on.

‘Hands Off!’ anti-Trump protests draw thousands in Southern California

More voices from rallies around the region and beyond:

Huntington Beach

“This is a dangerous time. We’re moving in the direction of authoritarianism.” – Bill Gaffaney, U.S. Army veteran

Pasadena

“We have to resist. We have to fight. Rally every day. Let’s increase our numbers. They may have the three branches of government, but we have the streets.” – U.S Rep. Judy Chu (D-Pasadena)

“I’m here because I’m opposed to Trump and Musk and their destroying of our institutions. I’m Jewish and I’m also opposed to  the murder of Palestinians.” – Carol Smith, 92, Highland Park

“I have my 16-year-old granddaughter and if we don’t do this, she’s going to Inherit a world  she never would have imagined.” – Alan Dias, La Canada, retiree

Rancho Cucamonga

Mandy Warner was out with her 10-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter, who were holding signs reading “Save Our National Parks” and “Hands Off Books. The rally was a civics lesson.

“It’s important they know to speak up when they disagree with something” – their mother

Torrance

“I think it’s really important that the people have to show this because obviously Congress is not doing what you have to do. Some of the courts are but not the Supreme Court. They have to understand they work for us. Bullies shouldn’t be tolerated in a democracy.” – Charlene Nishimura, retiree

Downtown Los Angeles

“ We have people coming all the way up from San Diego. We had people coming from Los Angeles County, Ventura County, Inland Empire, Orange County … even some people flying out from other states to come here to unite because it’s bigger than any one person or any one cause. It’s about everyone.” – Hunter Dunn, a “Hands off!” organizer

By 5 p.m., the crowd was in the tens of thousands.

“The people, united, will never be divided.” – the massive crowd, chanting

Washington, D.C.

“The attacks that we’re seeing, they’re not just political. They are personal, y’all. They’re trying to ban our books, they’re slashing HIV prevention funding, they’re criminalizing our doctors, our teachers, our families and our lives. We don’t want this America, y’all. We want the America we deserve, where dignity, safety and freedom belong not to some of us, but to all of us.” – Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign advocacy group

Columbus, Ohio

“He (Trump) is tearing this country apart. It’s just an administration of grievances.” – Roger Broom, 66, retiree

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida

“They need to keep their hands off of our Social Security. The list of what they need to keep their hands off of is too long. And it’s amazing how soon these protests are happening since he’s taken office.” – Archer Moran, Port St. Lucie, Fla.

Charlotte, North Carolina

“Regardless of your party, regardless of who you voted for, what’s going on today, what’s happening today is abhorrent. It’s disgusting, and as broken as our current system might be, the way that the current administration is going about trying to fix things – it is not the way to do it. They’re not listening to the people.” – Britt Castillo, 35

Staff writers Sydney Barragan, Teresa Liu, Anissa Rivera, Jordan B. Darling and Christina Merino and The Associated Press contributed to this report.