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Tens of thousands rally at Boston Common for third ‘No Kings’ protest
The crowd was part of the nationwide demonstration and heard speeches from state leaders and a performance by the Dropkick Murphys.
Handmade signs bobbed above a sea of people as chants echoed across Boston Common Saturday, where tens of thousands gathered for the third “No Kings” rally.
As part of a coordinated wave of protests held across the country, the “No Kings” rally was organized by a coalition that includes the ACLU of Massachusetts, Indivisible Mass Coalition, and Mass 50501.
The event featured speeches and live performances, including a set from the Dropkick Murphys and appearances by musical groups such as the Good Trouble Brass Band.
Debbie Paul of Indivisible Mass Coalition, one of the organizers, estimated that more than 150,000 people attended — similar to the turnout at October’s rally.
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Paul described the demonstration as “historic,” noting that protests also took place internationally. Across the United States, more than 3,300 rallies were held Saturday, including over 160 in Massachusetts — the second-highest total of any state, she said.
“We are building the movement,” she said. “We are pulling more people in, and we’re keeping them engaged and activated.”
Paul said organizers also set up “action tables” around the Common, where attendees could sign up to join advocacy groups, including the ACLU of Massachusetts and Indivisible Mass Coalition.
“The message is we, the people, have the power, and we can exercise it and push back,” she said. “This is our democracy. We elect our representatives. It is a government of the people, for the people, and by the people — not kings, not dictators.”
Speakers urge action and warn of political threats
More than a dozen speakers addressed the crowd throughout the afternoon, including Gov. Maura Healey.
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“This is why I love Massachusetts,” Healey said, surveying the crowd. “For 250 years, we haven’t had kings in Massachusetts, and we’re not going backwards.”
Healey encouraged attendees to speak openly about politics and engage others, emphasizing the stakes of upcoming elections.
“Massachusetts, keep doing what we need to keep doing, but we need to do more. We need to do more, because we know what is coming,” she said. “We know that Donald Trump is going to weaponize every agency in the federal government to steal this election.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren also spoke, criticizing U.S. military involvement abroad.
“Trump on his own has sent our brave service members overseas to die in another endless war, and he’s spending a billion dollars a day to drop bombs halfway around the world,” she said. “Will you fight back?”
Bahar Sharafi of the National Iranian American Council called for a renewed anti-war movement and urged attendees to pressure elected officials.
“We are one month into this war. We need an anti-war movement,” she said. “We need to be disruptive enough to make it painful for this regime to continue its course.”
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Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell focused on immigration, highlighting the importance of immigrant communities and ongoing legal efforts to protect them.
“Without our immigrant workers, this state, this country would crumble economically,” she said.
Campbell also highlighted the launch of an ICE Misconduct Portal, developed with Healey’s office, which allows residents to document and report alleged abuses by federal immigration agents.
“With this collective power, with our people power, we can do anything,” she said. “We certainly will overcome this administration like we’ve done any in the past that have sought to harm us and dismantle the values we care about.”
Marcelo Gomes da Silva, a Milford teenager who was detained by federal agents last year, spoke about the fear among young people in immigrant communities.
“You can’t make America great again by scaring the next generation,” he said. “You can’t create leaders by forcing kids into hiding. That’s not strength. That’s not leadership. Real leadership creates stability. It creates trust.”
“Freedom isn’t just words on paper — it’s whether people actually feel safe enough to live their lives,” he added. “And freedom means we question power. We don’t worship it.”
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While the Dropkick Murphys performed, frontman Ken Casey addressed the crowd between songs.
“I can’t believe we live in this stupid, dystopian nightmare ruled by the dumbest people ever,” Casey said before announcing the song “Like A Criminal,” which he said is dedicated to “the biggest idiot.”
‘It is wholly American to be here right now‘
Many attendees said they came not only to protest — but to feel solidarity with others.
Anne Stowe said she hopes the rally sends a message to those in power that they are losing support.
“Our country is not our country anymore,” she said. “I was always proud of America, and I’m not proud of us now.”
Becky Franks, who attended with Stowe, said she is concerned about elected officials’ ability to ignore the public opinion.
“People in power have so much power at this point, they don’t really need to care about whether we approve or don’t approve,” she said. “I think if we could get to a point where they can’t ignore us, that’s what I’m hoping for.”
For Heidi Berzovici, the protest was also about finding a community to “feel a little bit less hopeless.”
“We absolutely love our country, and we are going to fight for our country’s values,” she said. “I want [the administration] to know that they are not all powerful, that this is going to come to an end, that they cannot do whatever whenever they want.”
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Some demonstrators used humor to draw attention.
Donna Farrell wore an inflatable bumblebee costume with a simple message: “Be[e] nice.”
“We love the values [the U.S.] stands for, which is freedom and human rights,” she said. “And I feel like we’re slowly losing them for one small minority.”
Wren Galarza, a second-year student at Northeastern University, said they attended in support of members in their community affected by immigration policies. Galarza held a sign that read “Abolish ICE.”
“This is what I can do without sacrificing my education to help,” Galarza said, “and I have the privilege of being a white person to actually do it.”
“It is wholly American to be here right now,” they added.
Rebecca Smith, who has attended all three “No Kings” rallies, said she feels compelled to keep showing up.
“You think Trump has done just the most horrible thing and then he does something even more horrible,” she said. “And I’m getting tired of the lies and the corruption and the self serving and the sycophants.”
Smith carried multiple signs and wore an inflatable pony costume, which represents their peacefulness, she said.
“This is to keep it a little bit lighter when it really is a serious matter,” she said of the pony. “Also, it draws attention to what we want to say.”
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