Hundreds turn out on Waltham Common to protest Trump administration actions

Around 850 Waltham residents gathered at the common Saturday to protest the Trump administration and its policies. 

The Waltham protest was one of 1,400 demonstrations involving 2.3 million registered participants across the country, according to Elizabeth Hoffecker of Indivisible Waltham, organizer of the Waltham rally. 

Cars and trucks passing through the Moody and Main streets intersection honked their horns, adding to the noise from the protestors’ chants.

The demonstrators’ rallying cry was “Hands Off.” A forest of placards, many hand-drawn with colorful markers, displayed the names of government programs – Social Security, healthcare, education, arts, veterans’ programs, cancer research – that the administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has targeted for budget and staff cuts.

Waltham resident Jill Skobie, who attended with her two adult daughters, said she felt “extreme distress about the administration of this country and the values that they are espousing and the people they are hurting.” 

She added, “We have to make this country what we wish it could be, and what we know it can be.”

Her daughter Megan Skobie, a Newton resident, spoke out against the economic impact of Trump’s policies.

“I just retired two months ago, so I’m now a senior citizen on a fixed income, so skyrocketing grocery prices are very directly affecting our personal finances,” she said 

She also voiced concerns about the administration’s social impact. “I’m sick and tired of [the administration] demonizing people,” she said.

Rachel Skobie said she was seeing the impact of administration policies in her work. 

”I work at Head Start in New York City. They already put half of our team on administrative leave,” she said, noting that Head Start locations in western New York state have already been closed. For many people, “having their child at school means that they can go to work. And these are the kinds of jobs where missing a day of work means lack of pay or losing your job. So the repercussions are very real.”

Barry Borak said he joined the protest because Trump has “driven the economy off the cliff.” He was also upset about the administration’s defunding of Federal Emergency Management Agency grants. “What happens when the next hurricane and tornado hits and there’s no FEMA to come out and help people?”

Others attended Saturday’s protest to stand up for their beliefs. 

“It’s really important to use our voice to say, ‘This is not okay, this is not normal,’” said Audrey Yarrow. “We need to return to a world where we care about others. We care about immigrants. We’re here for the rights of everyone.”

Suzanne Costas, parked in her power wheelchair alongside the citizens arrayed along the Moody Street boundary of the common, said she wanted to show solidarity with her neighbors in their shared anger and frustration. 

“I don’t like the complete disregard for the rule of law,” she said. “I don’t like the disregard for the Constitution. I don’t like the treatment of folks even if they are not here legally. They’re entitled to due process. There’s a sloppiness and arrogance and cruelty and zeal that is terrifying.”

The bandstand at the common’s center provided a safe space for a toddler to run as his grandmother, the Rev. Becky Sheble-Hall, kept watch. The toddler grasped a sign stating “Hands off my future.” 

“I’ve kind of lost hope that there’s anyone protecting our democracy other than us,” Sheble-Hall said. “I’m a new grandmother now, and this is my grandson Leo. I’m very concerned for his future and what schools are going to be teaching him. Our country is emphasizing fear right now and we’d like to emphasize love.”

That sentiment was echoed by a young woman in the crowd. “I want to stand up for our democracy while we still can,” said the woman, who declined to give her name.

UPDATE APRIL 9: The Waltham Police Department estimated the crowd size at around 400 people.