No Kings in Holliston

On March 28 2026, municipalities across the nation drew crowds of hundreds of thousands of people to protest the Trump administration in protests titled “No Kings Day”. National tallies recorded numbers of 8,000,000 participants in total across 3,3000 towns and cities. 

Holliston’s final number was over 1000, with coordinated events happening in neighboring towns of Hopkinton (500+ participants), Ashland (400+ participants), and Medway (180+ participants). 

Image via Cindy Burrows

Some activists online criticize No Kings Protests, observing that they don’t make the impact that is necessary for the radical change needed. Some suggest that we should be focusing on organized national strikes and boycotts, actions that will hit the abusers of power where it hurts the most: their bottom lines. I don’t disagree that we need bold and strategic action. If I have one criticism of the resistance thus far, it is that we have failed to coordinate our efforts in this way. We can organize millions of people to turn out on Saturday for 1 hour, but imagine the impact we might have if all of those millions of people pledged to commit to a list of action items — and then were held accountable to them through continued engagement. 

And. 

Image via Barb Worby.

I believe that these protests are accomplishing something else. They are building community, connecting folks to local organizing efforts, and combating isolation and despair. The energy and positivity at these events is undeniable. People laugh, they compliment each other’s signs, and they are encouraged by the numbers they see in real time. We are not alone. Not even close. We all see what is going on here. That’s not nothing. In fact, it is incredibly important for sustaining the energy required to keep going. When part of the weaponry being pointed at us is psychological, the defense is connection. For those of us who are not feeling the direct impact of inhumane policies or cuts funding cuts, we are feeling the very real effects of the “flooding of the zone”, this administration’s attempt to wear us down with an influx of painful and hope-stealing news, around the clock. Many of us turn inward, isolate, and focus on surviving our own day to day, which to be fair, is already hard enough as it is. It is self-preservation to avoid ongoing pain. It often feels like there is no good choice here: either tune in and manage the effects this has on your mental health, or tune out and feel guilty for avoiding it. 

A third option is to pick 1 or 2 actions you can complete on a regular basis, and stay laser focused there. Protests like the No Kings Day events rejuvenate our energy towards getting involved. They help lift the veil of despair by seeing that there are many, many people resisting, and we will not go gentle into that good night. And what has increasingly been happening at these events is that people are getting connected to organizations where they can begin to engage in their “1-2 laser focused actions”. At Holliston’s protest, some people were collecting signatures for local and state-level campaigns. Others were sharing information about how to get involved with local efforts to support communities in the cross-hairs of the Trump administration’s inhuman policies. Another woman brought sunchoke tubers from her garden and gave them away to folks who wanted them, along with instructions for planting and growing.  The Democratic Town Committee collected donations for Advocates, a non-profit dedicated to supporting people with mental health, developmental, or other life challenges, and raised over $300. 

Do we need more nationally coordinated resistance? Absolutely. Can we push for that AND continue to show up in record-breaking numbers to protests whenever we can? Of course. It will take many tools and all kinds of activism to topple the injustices we have before us. 

Thank you to the organizers of Holliston’s No Kings Protest. You know who you are and your work is incredibly valuable. Thank you. To those who showed up on Saturday and held a sign on Washington Street, thank you. It is brave to stand up for what you believe in, especially when this administration has challenged our very right to peacefully assemble and resist. 

To anyone, whether you attended the No Kings Day protest or not, consider your 1-2 laser focused action items. Here are some ideas:

1. Use the 5 Calls App 5calls.org  and contact our representatives daily. It is super-easy and fast, and it really does matter. They tally the numbers and topics people call about. 

2. Set up a recurring donation to a cause you care about. Here are a few you might consider: 

   1. Metrowest Worker’s Center Casa Del Trabajador https://www.mwc-casa.org/  

   2. Fair Fight: Fighting Voter Suppression and Protecting Voter Rights https://www.fairfight.com/

   3. American Civil Liberties Union https://www.aclu.org/

   4. Greater Boston PFLAG https://www.gbpflag.org/ 

3. Sign up to help Diverse Holliston! 

   1. Join the affordable housing committee 

   2. Techie? Help with our newsletter and website 

   3. Work with the new superintendent to create a vision that is aligned with the safe and supportive schools we want to see in our district 

We can’t do everything, but we can do one thing. And that one thing is never nothing.