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Violence erupts as Trump foes clash with supporters

A female anti-Trump protester is beaten by an administration supporter during violent scenes in Berkeley, California.

A female anti-Trump protester is beaten by an administration supporter during violent scenes in Berkeley, California. Photo YouTube

Tens of thousands of people have marched through midtown Manhattan and dozens of US cities to demand that President Donald Trump release his tax returns.

The latest outpouring mass public contempt for the Trump administration was timed to coincide with the April 15 deadline for Amricans to file their annual tax returns.

Organisers of ‘Tax March’ in more than 150 cities across the country and beyond wanted to call attention to Mr Trump’s refusal to disclose his tax history, as his White House predecessors have done for more than 40 years.

Most of the rallies proceeded without incident, but in Berkeley, California, 13 people were arrested after violent clashes between Trump supporters and black-clad protests.

About 200 people had gathered at Berkeley’s Martin Luther King Jr Civic Centre Park when several fights broke out. Dozens of police officers in riot gear standing nearby quickly arrested one man. Others were arrested after several skirmishes.

Trump supporters announced they were holding a ‘Patriot Day’ at the park at noon (local time). Counter-demonstrators then said they would hold a rally at the same place at 10am.

Police put in a makeshift barrier of plastic orange poles and orange fence mesh to separate both sides, but that quickly came down as demonstrators started punching and kicking each other, while pepper spray and firecrackers were thrown to the crowd.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that after the barriers was put back in place, demonstrators shouted at each other from a distance.

“You go back to the ’60s,” shouted a pro-Trump supporter.

“You go back to the 1400s,” someone on the opposing side shouted back.

Two of the biggest tax marches took place in New York and Los Angeles, with each drawing about 5,000 people, according to estimates.
What Trump’s said about his taxes

In Manhattan, a good-natured crowd marched to Central Park.

Among the marchers was an oversized inflatable rooster, sporting an angry expression and a sweeping metallic orange hairdo meant to resemble Mr Trump’s signature style.

In Washington, more than 1,500 protesters gathered on the front lawn of the US Capitol, where members of Congress addressed the crowd before it marched to the Lincoln Memorial.

“We are taking the gloves off to say knock off the secrecy, Mr President,” said Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, which would play a leading role in tax reform measures being considered in Congress.

He described Mr Trump’s refusal to release his taxes as being “like a teenager trying to hide a lousy report card”.

Joe Dinkin, spokesman for the Working Families Party, one of the groups organising the marches, said investigations into the Trump campaign’s alleged connections to Russia underscore the need to disclose his returns.

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