Hundreds of people attended a protest outside the Massachusetts State House Wednesday, part of a national movement to oppose the early actions of President Donald Trump’s administration.
The movement has organized under the hashtags #buildtheresistance and #50501, which stands for 50 protests, 50 states, one day. Many of the protests are planned at state capitols, with some in other cities.
WATCH ANYTIME FOR FREE
 |
Stream NBC10 Boston news for free, 24/7, wherever you are. |
The movement has websites and accounts across social media. Flyers circulating online decry Project 2025, a hard-right playbook for American government and society, and include messages such as “reject fascism” and “defend our democracy.”
Protests were held at noon Wednesday at the state houses in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and several other New England states.
Get updates on what's happening in Boston to your inbox. Sign up for our News Headlines newsletter.
For Mara Huston, in Boston, the protest was personal — she's an immigrant and she has a non-binary child whose passport, she said, is no longer valid.
"They’re being their authentic self. Because of Trump, their passport is now illegal, their identification is now illegal," Huston said.
Demonstrators walked to the Common, the John F. Kennedy Federal Building and back to the steps of the State House.
"Hopefully people will continue to organize these efforts to put pressure on our local politicians as well to make sure that they’re standing up to right wing attacks happening federally and in our own state," said Brenda Quintana, of Dorchester.
In New Hampshire, Concord City Democrats urged anyone attending to “be cautious” as the protest is a grassroots effort and was organized independently of their organization.
Local Democrats announced they have cancelled the event scheduled for Maine’s State House “out of an abundance of caution” because it had been “infiltrated by bad actors looking to spread hate, misinformation, and turmoil.”
“We have pulled our permit with the Capitol Police and any one who shows up will be considered on their own,” the Kennebec County Democratic Committee said in a Facebook post.
Trump has signed a series of executive orders in the first couple of weeks of his new term on everything from trade and immigration to climate change. As Democrats begin to raise their voice in opposition to Trump’s agenda, protests have also begun.
