On Tuesday, April 7, protesters gathered at the corner of Central Avenue and University Boulevard in response to President Donald Trump’s threats to wipe out the Iranian civilization if the country didn’t reopen the Strait of Hormuz by his 8 p.m. deadline.
“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will. However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS? We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World. 47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end. God Bless the Great People of Iran!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The war between Iran and the U.S. had been ongoing for six weeks before the two countries agreed on a two-week ceasefire less than two hours before the deadline, according to CBS News.
On Sunday, Trump wrote in a Truth Social post that, in conjunction with other allied countries, he would order the U.S. Navy to blockade the Strait of Hormuz over Iran’s refusal to give up its nuclear materials and claims that they had laid mines through the water crossing used in international trade, particularly oil.
Later that afternoon, U.S. Central Command said they would begin a blockade of Iranian ports and coastal areas at 10 a.m. EST on Monday, but allow vessels not traveling to Iranian ports to sail through the Strait of Hormuz.
Some protesters said they felt scared when they first read the news of Trump’s threats. Cristiana Sandoval said she was worried about the future of her children.
“It’s a little bit terrifying for what’s going to happen for the future or even tomorrow,” Sandoval said. “Honestly, like today, I’m grateful being able to even protest.”
Alyssa Lucero said she was skeptical of the two-week ceasefire.
“We saw how the ceasefire went with Israel and Palestine, and so, it’s really hard to trust a man who lies to his citizens every single day,” Lucero said.
Multiple temporary ceasefires have been enacted during the Israel-Hamas War, most recently in October 2025. Since the agreement, Israel has on more than one occasion resumed strikes in retaliation to what they claim are violations of the provisions of the ceasefire, including refusal to hand over the remains of hostages and the shooting of an Israeli soldier, the latter of which has been disavowed by Hamas leadership, according to the Associated Press.
High school student Rebecca Nez came to the protest with a sign that read “No one is free until we are all free.”
“What’s going on in Iran, I feel so sad about what’s happening,” Nez said. “It’s just sickening how insensitive the president is right now, how the people he is bringing into government are just following after him.”
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
University of New Mexico graduate student Yoma Wilson said he thinks it’s “scary” that Trump can “admit to plan war crimes,” but feels hopeful that people are standing up to him.
“I just hope it’s not just as superficial as anti-Trump-ness,” Wilson said. “That’s not going to just happen with a blue wave or the Democrats winning. It really needs to come from the bottom up, and we need to organize, and seeing protests like this gives me a lot of hope.”
Paloma Chapa is the multimedia editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at multimedia@dailylobo.com or on X @paloma_chapa88
Paloma Chapa is the multimedia editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at multimedia@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @paloma_chapa88
