Approximately 500 people gathered in front of the Massachusetts State House Sunday afternoon for an “Emergency Rally to Stand for Democracy,” protesting President Donald Trump’s administration.
The rally was organized to stand in support of the press, protest Trump’s alleged ties with Russia and demand a nonpartisan investigation into Trump’s actions, according to the event Facebook page.
Organized by 29-year-old citizen activist Olivia Hartranft, the protest featured various speakers who shared their thoughts on the matter.
The rally opened with a series of slogans chanted by speakers and the crowd, including “What did he know? When did he know it?” and “Democracy is under attack! What do we do? Stand up, fight back!”
“The compromising of our elections by a hostile foreign entity weakens the very fabric of democracy,” Hartranft said in her opening speech, echoing an earlier statement that the biggest threat to democracy under the current administration is the possibility of illegal elections.
Anthony Farley, a professor at Albany Law School and a speaker at the rally, expressed his concern about Trump’s political actions.
“[The election] placed a box with 5,000 Hiroshimas in it on a desk in the Oval Office and gave a mad man the key,” Farley said.
Despite these concerns, the rally was not a somber affair. All the speakers spoke of the potential for change, for average citizens to use democracy to make their voices heard.
Jacquelyn Ryan, a member of the Massachusetts Democratic Party State Committee and the first openly transgender elected official in Massachusetts, addressed the opening of her speech to Trump, saying that the transgender community has been watching his actions this past week.
“We’re not going to stand for it,” Ryan said. “We’re going to fight every single day.”
Bob Massie, the executive director of the Sustainable Solutions Lab at the University of Massachusetts Boston, echoed this same idea by comparing the people’s actions today to the work of colonial rebels in Boston during the Revolutionary War. While the 1776 revolution removed a king, Massie called for Trump’s impeachment.
“[Donald Trump] is compromised by a foreign nation, and he is compromised by his business goals … two impeachable offenses within the first month,” Massie said.
Medha Palnati, a 16-year-old citizen activist, a member of the LGBTQ community and the daughter of Indian immigrants, spoke at the event, arguing that people in a democracy have the right to criticize the government.
Several people at the rally expressed their frustrations with the current administration and attested to the importance of continued political action.
Roger Peduzzi, 68, of Maynard, said the biggest threat to democracy right now was the potential for people to stop fighting.
“[If we stop fighting] people will lose their rights,” Peduzzi said. “People who thought Trump would help them will get hurt, the poor will get poorer and the rich will get richer.”
John Murray, 69, of Somerville, said he came to the rally because it’s every citizen’s responsibility to defend the constitution and the nation. The new president should also carry out his duties, Murray added.
“I’m honoring my part, he’s not honoring his,” Murray said.
Christine Jaurei, 44, of Hull, said she came in part because her husband is a journalist, but also to do her part in protesting the new administration.
“If this had happened under a Democratic administration the Republicans would be screaming bloody murder,” Jaurei said. “But it’s happening on the Republican watch so it’s ignored, which is a disservice to us all.
