Progressives including Gainey rally to “stop the steal” of Social Security

In East Liberty on Tues., Apr. 1, about 40 protestors chanted “Stop the steal!” to approving honks from passing-by cars. These weren’t MAGA supporters protesting election results — these were protestors repurposing the slogan to rail against the local ramifications of federal spending cuts from U.S. President Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency.

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey joined activists in standing outside the East Liberty Social Security Office to oppose its potential closure by the Trump administration.

“We gotta tell D.C., one, stay outta Pittsburgh, and two, leave our services alone,” Gainey said to the crowd.

In the past few weeks, news outlets across the country have reported on a surfaced list of Social Security offices to be supposedly closed by the Trump administration. Local outlets such as the TribLive reported in early March that the East Liberty office would be included in addition to another office in Greensburg and the William S. Moorhead Federal Building located Downtown. At the end of March, the Social Security Administration characterized such reports as false and said no closures have been announced, but activists and other supporters of Social Security remain skeptical.

The brief protest included attendance by the Wilkinsburg Democratic Committee, the Greater Pittsburgh Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees, Wilkinsburg mayor Mayor Dontae Comans, Wilkinsburg councilwoman Natisha Washington, and others in addition to Gainey. The Democratic Committee collected donations in a large Home Depot bucket while passionate individuals spoke in anticipation of the mayor’s appearance.

Al Hart, a retired editor of the UE News, a labor magazine, and a former union organizer said to the crowd that social security needs to be strengthened, a step further than mere protection from cuts. For Social Security taxes, the IRS only includes income up to $176,100 a year – a tiny, tiny fraction of the wealthiest Americans’ income.

“Someone like Elon Musk pays Social Security taxes for the first five minutes of the year, and then he’s exempted. We pay it all year. Everyone should pay it all year,” Hart said on a megaphone. “I don’t care if you’re a multibillionaire, I don’t care if you’re a trillionaire, tax every frickin’ penny of your income to support Social Security, and then we can fix it.”

When Gainey spoke, he turned and pointed behind him.

“I grew up right here, before they built the new housing. And I know how important this [Social Security office] is. I know how many people used this building through the years. I know how our mothers, our grandmothers, our neighbors come here all the time,” Gainey said. “When I was a state representative, people didn’t even understand where to go when they needed their Social Security, so they’d come to my office. And I could easily tell them to come right here and find out exactly what they need to do.”

After the protest, Gainey told Pittsburgh City Paper that the path forward for protecting local Social Security offices is getting people together to push back through action like the protest and by speaking up and calling members of Congress. When asked if there’s anything the Mayor’s office could do directly, Gainey gave an answer that speaks to the progressive mayor’s community-advocacy-focused political strategy.

“I’m gonna be out here with the people every day to fight, you know what I mean?” Gainey says. “Advocacy is just as strong as policy sometimes.”

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This article appears in Apr 2-8, 2025.