Between 25,000 and 100,000 people gathered from Boston Common to City Hall Plaza on Saturday for the “Hands Off Massachusetts! Rally/March.” The rally was one of over 1,200 taking place as part of the “Hands Off!” movement across the country and abroad. In Boston, demonstrators began in Boston Common and marched down Tremont Street toward City Hall.
The movement’s goals are to stand up to corruption, end the gutting of federally funded programs and protect threatened communities. The movement specifically challenges President Donald Trump’s administration and Elon Musk.
“Since his inauguration, Donald Trump has launched an unprecedented power grab—driving up prices, slashing funding for essential programs, and creating instability at every turn. Enabled by Elon Musk and Republicans in Congress, his corrupt agenda is making life harder for everyday Americans while eroding our democracy,” the Hands Off! toolkit reads.
In Boston, particular emphasis was placed on Rümeysa Öztürk, the Tufts graduate student detained seemingly due to her writing an op-ed in the Daily about the Tufts Community Union Senate’s March 2024 resolutions regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Reggie Alkiewicz, a civic engagement coordinator at the North American Indian Center of Boston, read a statement from Mahsa Khanbabai, Öztürk’s lawyer.
“Rümeysa did what we teach all people in America to do in the face of injustice. She spoke up,” Alkiewicz read. “She used her right to free speech to advocate against human rights abuses.”
People attended the rally for a myriad of reasons, some for a particular issue and others for the state of the country at large. Danielle, a New Hampshire local, felt so strongly that she drove to Boston to join the rally.
“I felt like I needed to do something, and this felt like the thing to do. I wanted there to be lots of bodies here. So I drove down from New Hampshire to be a part of it.”
High school sophomore Seneca also felt that it was important to attend the event.
“Some of my friends and myself were encouraged to come by our history teacher, and we wanted an opportunity for youth to come to such a large event and show how intergenerational this movement really is,” she said.
Protestors held signs with messages including “Protect Each Other,” “Hands off Rumeysa” and “No Kings in Boston.”
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu attended the rally, speaking to the importance of protecting immigrants and science.
“Boston is and always will be a home for everybody,” Wu said.
“We need each other, and the country needs Boston right now,” she continued. “Boston has never and will never back down to bullies.”
Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., who also spoke during the rally, compared this moment to the Civil Rights Movement.
“The great Corretta Scott King reminds us that freedom is never really won,” Pressley said. “We must earn it and win it in every generation. And this is our time.”
Pressley, as well as other speakers, led the crowd in chanting “hands off” to a variety of matters including immigrants, scientific research, welfare programs, the LGBTQ+ community and democracy itself.
Other speakers included Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass.; Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll; Jaya Savita, director of the Asian Pacific Islander’s Civic Action Network; union presidents; Rich Couture, president of the American Federation of Federal Employees Council 215; trans activist Chastity Bowick; Kyle Ariel Bemis, an athlete advocate for Rising Hearts; and other federal government employees.
The event concluded with a set by the Dropkick Murphys. Lead singer Ken Casey shared that the band was proud to be in attendance.
“One hundred thousand people on City Hall Plaza to protest what’s going on in this country — it warms our f---ing heart,” Casey said. “We’re here for the people.”
See more photos from the event here.
