“The Battle of Lexington and Concord was here. It was the first place where we took our stand against kings. And I feel like we’re doing that again,” eighth-grade Lexington resident and protester Violet Solomon said, holding up a sign reading, “ICE out of our communities!”
On the frigid yet sunny morning of Saturday, March 28, nearly 2,000 local “No Kings” protesters flocked to the green lot in front of the Lexington Visitors Center to vocalize their grievances against the Trump administration — across the street from where the first shot of the Revolutionary War was fired.
Organized by Lexington Alarm! and Indivisible Lexington-Arlington-Belmont (LAB), Saturday’s protest boasted a full docket of impassioned speakers, including U.S. Army veteran and Chair of the Massachusetts Poor People’s Campaign Dr. Savina Martin, and student co-organizers of the recent Lexington High School ICE-OUT walkout Layla Farnham and Ayla Modirzadeh-March. Singer Jan Maier led the crowd in singing call-and-response-style protest songs that were sung at protests in Minneapolis. Cozmic Crush, a local all-girl rock band, closed the rally by performing several heavy yet hopeful songs. At noon, buses departed from the Visitors Center to the larger “No Kings” protest on the Boston Common. The entire two-hour demonstration was punctuated by supportive honks from passing cars.
LHS juniors Layla Farnham and Ayla Modirzadeh-March, organizers of the recent LHS walkout / Credit: Lauren Feeney
“We felt the need growing from the public for more events, and for protests against the current federal regime under Donald Trump, as well as more opportunities to raise awareness,” Lexington Alarm! and Indivisible LAB member Margaret Heitz said.
Seemingly unbothered by the cold, protesters came bundled in layers, holding carefully designed posters high in thickly gloved hands. “I’m here to freeze my hands off and to show that people care about America and American values and that the present regime needs to go,” Lexington resident David Moon said.
Among many of the non-Lexington resident protesters at the rally, Cambridge resident Becky Wheatland said, “I came over to Lexington because it is a symbolic place for protests today. We’re right next to the Minuteman statue, and I felt very strongly that we fought back in 1775, and we need to do it again. If we forget history, these horrible things can happen again 250 years later.”
The protest in Lexington was part of a nationwide wave of demonstrations on March 28. A hallmark of the “No Kings” protest series is that there is no single issue underscoring the demonstration other than a common frustration with the Trump Administration.
“I’m here so that I can be counted among the thousands and thousands of people who oppose this so-called government. I love my country, and I don’t want to see it destroyed by a lunatic,” Arlington resident Louisa Pepper said.
Pepper clutched a sign that bore a single word: “Rapist.” She said, “That’s basically what our president is. He has destroyed the lives of so many young girls. I have a very personal connection to rapists. So I’m passionate about it, and I took this protest as my opportunity to make a statement about it.”
A man dressed in a full-body polar bear costume waved a sign decorated with myriad question marks, reading, “One billion to stop offshore wind?” referencing the Administration’s recent payout to a large French energy company to abandon its plans to develop offshore wind farms, a method of generating renewable energy, off the East Coast.
Lexington eighth-grader Margo Council held a sign with a lyric from the musical Hamilton about pursuing justice.
“People have a right to be themselves, to live in peace and not in fear of constant violence, and to love who they love,” she said.
A few protesters felt uncomfortable being interviewed at all, while others were open to being recorded but refused to disclose their names to the Observer. “I remain anonymous because we’re living in a police state, and I’d rather not get arrested, if I can help it. Privacy and security, those are the two things I care about,” one protester said. “A lot of people here have the same ideas, so it doesn’t really matter what your name is.”
Lexington resident, local author, and immigrant Rita Goldberg’s parents, both Jewish, were survivors of the Holocaust. Goldberg was born in Switzerland, where her family eventually fled due to antisemitism.
“We came to New York when I was nine months old, the age of my youngest grandson now,” Goldberg said. “This all matters to me, especially because I was in the same position [immigrants today are in], and so were my parents. We came to America because we believed in its values. We all had very happy lives, but we always participated in every protest,” she said. “I was involved in the Civil Rights movement from the age of 14, partly under pressure from my parents. I know many people of our generation, even without an immigrant background, have done the same because we have not given up hope of what America can be. It’s optimism and outrage that propel us.”
Saturday morning’s throng was notably dominated by elderly and middle-aged protesters—local youth were scarce. “I hope that young people stay particularly active and inspired, because we need them badly,” Lexington resident Anne Kelly said. “We need your participation, your hope, your ideas, and your enthusiasm.”
Cozmic Crush bassist and LHS senior Delia Tsouvalas attributed the low youth turnout to challenges surrounding promoting protests at school. “Especially in Lexington, it’s a very busy time of year for high schoolers. The third quarter just ended, so there are lots of academic events happening right now. At LHS, we’re not allowed to put up political posters in the school unless they’re signed by a teacher, so it can be hard,” Tsouvalas said.
Cozmic Crush lead vocalist Riley Kee attributed the minimal teenage presence to stigma surrounding speaking up for progressive values.
“I think that a lot of youth aren’t here because they’re scared,” she said. “A lot of Gen Z, especially in my grade, are scared of being cringey or being too much. They’re afraid of being the woke kid. They’re afraid of being blue hair and pronouns.”
Some teens did come out to advocate for their beliefs and catalyze positive change. “We are capable of so much more than anyone expects. …Looking out on the faces of hundreds of my classmates the day of the [LHS ICE-OUT] walkout, I could not help but be filled with hope for the future,” Modirzadeh-March said.
On the frigid yet sunny morning , hundreds of local “No Kings” protesters flocked to Lexington Center to vocalize their grievances against the Trump administration — across the street from where the first shot of the Revolutionary War was fired.
