Hundreds of veterans and their supporters gathered on the steps of the state Capitol on Friday afternoon, joining thousands across the country in a nationwide march against the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to Social Security, reductions in veterans’ health care and federal job losses, among other concerns.
Protesters showed up from Lakewood to Crestone to Cheyenne Wells – carrying flags and homemade cardboard signs reading “respect and support our veterans,” “Trump and Musk are traitors,” “We served, save the VA.”
The protests come in the wake of executive orders issued by President Donald Trump largely focused on immigration, trade, and health care. Some of the policies have led to mass firings and significant downsizing of the federal government, with the Department of Veterans Affairs now among the latest agencies, which provides health care and other services to veterans – on the chopping block.
The administration has proposed cutting more than 80,000 jobs from the VA, which is one of the largest providers of mental health care in the country.
“I know it hasn't happened yet, but I'm out here to support the veterans and to try to stop that from happening,” Margot Wilson, a family member of multiple veterans, said. “This is not political, in my opinion; this is not Republican or Democrat. This is about people and integrity and respecting what they've done to help and serve and protect us and the world. We need to stop the madness here. That's why I am here, a small voice, but I think it can make a difference.”
Wilson said she showed up on the steps of the Capitol for her nephew and her friend – both Army veterans. As she was holding up a cardboard sign with white painted letters, her nephew was just a few miles away at a VA facility in Severance Colorado receiving treatment.
“He was in Afghanistan, and he's got PTSD,” she said. “He's got a number of disabilities now as a result of serving in the war. He needs the VA; he needs the help.”
She says she worries what her nephew and her friend – who was a few hundred miles away at a similar protest in Boston – would do without the VA’s support and health care.
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