The Rock This Democracy organizers have announced that on Saturday, April 19, in collaboration with 50501, Newtown Action Alliance, Indivisible, Junior Newtown Action Alliance, and many more, all are invited to assemble at the Flagpole on Main Street, Newtown, at 7 pm.

Those in attendance will line the sidewalks on both sides of the street at the four corners to protest “the disappearance and imprisonment of at least two innocent men into El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison by the Trump administration.”

“In opposing this heinous miscarriage of justice this vigil will express solidarity with others across the country in defense of democracy, due process, and the rule of law as hundreds of 50501 rallies are taking place the same day,” stated event organizer Jim Allen in a press release.

The vigil begins at 7 pm and ends by candlelight as dusk falls. There will be speakers, self-expression, information and solidarity in action as attendees meet together around the flagpole on sidewalk areas only, not in the street. There will be no illegal obstruction of traffic. Attendees are encouraged to bring signs and candles, which will be lit as dusk falls. There is no registration required for this event.

For more information online readers may visit rockthisdemocracy.org.

This event follows one on April 5, when hundreds gathered at The Pleasance to attend the Rock This Democracy “Hands Off!” rally, which concluded with a march to the Main Street flagpole.

Organized by Rock This Democracy, Newtown Action Alliance, and other groups in solidarity with Indivisible, the goal of the event was to “underscore citizen outrage in the face of the Trump administration’s authoritarian excess, dangerous incompetence, violations of due process, assault on democracy, and threat to social security, and basic functions of government.”

The rally in Newtown was only one of many across the nation, with over 1,300 “Hands Off!” rallies of varying sizes taking place that day, according to NPR.

The cold and rainy weather that Saturday afternoon did not deter Newtown residents and others from surrounding towns and cities to crowd around The Pleasance.

People parked wherever they could along Main Street and South Main Street, with some even parking down in the Big Y parking lot, according to event organizer Alex Villamil. Others parked alongside Hawley Pond, trekking across the wet grass with signs and banners in tow to gather at the rally locatino at 1 Main Street.

People lined up along the side of South Main Street before the event started, holding signs that read “Hands Off! Medicare,” “Dissent is Patriotic,” and “Save Social Security” among many others. Some cars honked in solidarity with the protesters as they drove by, with some passengers even holding signs of their own.

Despite initially expecting a few hundred people to attend, Villamil estimated that over 700 people attended the Newtown rally.

“A Ripple In A Wave”

The event started with event organizer Jim Allen taking the stage, noting how he felt there are many issues stemming from President Donald Trump and his administration.

He called on the audience to think of Andry José Hernández Romero, a 31-year-old gay Venezuelan makeup artist, and Jerce Reyes Barrios, a 36-year-old professional soccer player and coach from Venezuela, who were deported to El Salvador’s maximum security prison, the Terrorism Confinement Center, also known as CECOT, without due process.

Allen also called everyone to think of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old Maryland father who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador by the Trump administration due to an “administrative error.”

This came after President Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 on March 15 to deport immigrants he alleged were members of the international gang Tren de Aragua. The act grants the US president sweeping powers to order the detention and deportation of natives or citizens of an “enemy” nation without due process.

Allen said that these “attacks on due process will not stand,” and that today across America, these “Hands Off!” rallies are bearing witness to the fact people will not let their country be taken.

He continued, “Here in New England, in the birthplace of our revolution, we are going to defend the freaking revolution. We will not live under a king.”

Allen handed the mic over to fellow event organizer Villamil, who said it was an honor to attend one of the thousands of “Hands Off!” rallies across the nation. He added that these rallies stem from a president who “does not value our institutions or our systems of government” and to keep the Trump administration’s hands off their constitution, healthcare, economy, Social Security, and more.

“We must stand together and get these people out before the harm they’re doing becomes irreparable,” Villamil said.

He continued by saying that change starts locally, and that Newtown residents should make their voices heard in the upcoming referendum on Tuesday, April 22. To stay engaged locally, he said, is an opportunity to stand with their schools, teachers, and children. At the same time, Villamil encouraged people to keep that same momentum and enthusiasm at the national level.

“It’s gonna be a wave,” Villamil said. “This is going to be the first ripple of that wave, but it’s going to start locally.”

Healthcare Concerns

He handed the floor over to Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz. In wanting to start with hope and happiness, Bysiewicz said that people have been coming out by the thousands for “Hands Off!” rallies all across Connecticut alone.

“People are coming out by the thousands to say ‘Hands Off!’ [our liberties, our democracy, and our wallets],” Bysiewicz said.

Bysiewicz continued by saying Americans have faced chaos since Trump took office, with thousands of federal workers laid off, the biggest tax increases in decades from the tariffs that went into effect, and the stock market tanking to a point that it has decimated people’s 401(k)s and their savings.

She noted that all of the proposed federal cuts are aimed at decimating programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security that have kept people out of poverty and helped the most vulnerable people in the state. Trump’s leadership, Bysiewicz said, has also targeted women, LGBTQ+ rights, immigrant rights, voting rights, labor rights, and more.

Bysiewicz said it can be hard with everything going on to know where to start, but encouraged people to protect programs like Social Security and Medicaid by calling friends, neighbors, and family and getting them to call their congressmen and their senators to say no.

“It’s time Republicans in Congress stood up and say no to Donald Trump,” Bysiewicz said.

Women’s Rights Concerns

Lisa Del Sesto and Raine Palladino spoke on behalf of nonprofit organization We Are Women Rising. Palladino said their mission is to empower women, build community, and advocate for equality, and added how that’s “what we’re doing with you all today.”

She added, “It can all feel overwhelming, but we are not alone. By coming together, standing up, and speaking up for our rights, constitution, and democracy, we can create positive change.”

Holding onto this feeling of unity and standing up for the principles their country was founded on, Palladino said, is how they can create that change.

Del Sesto said that the women of the country make up half of its soul, but said that freedoms that are fundamental to their autonomy are being systematically dismantled. She noted that 28 states in America have restrictions on abortion care, and 13 of those states have total bans on abortion.

“This is a human rights issue. Women’s rights are human rights. Immigrant rights are human rights. All people’s rights matter in this country,” Del Sesto said.

She continued by saying that progress is not guaranteed. If they don’t stay vigilant, the freedoms that they enjoy today “could very well be gone tomorrow.”

Palladino added that a government that withholds funding for educational programs and food assistance to families is “not a government working for us; that is a government working against us.”

Other Speakers

Half-Ukrainian half-American teenager Lada Bedriy read her college essay detailing the love she has for the prosperity and freedom of the United States and the culturally rich and beautiful Ukraine. She explained how her two- to three-month-long summer visits to Ukraine with her mother shaped her identity and she felt home there.

Bedriy also detailed her pain with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and how the Russo-Ukrainian War has affected her as a Ukrainian living in America. She said her heart bleeds seeing the girls she grew up with pack their lives into suitcases and run to France, as well as hearing how her 75-year-old grandmother had to learn to differentiate between the sound of bombs or planes flying over her apartment.

However, in that pain and in that struggle, she found a place within her to use this hardship to push herself forward and speak about her Ukrainian-American heritage. Without America, she said Ukraine “might not have made it to a day with four digits in this war.”

State Comptroller Sean Scanlon said he’s going to as many “Hands Off!” rallies as he can to remind people that they have the power. He added that rallying is not about hopelessness or powerlessness, but instead about strength.

“This is about what we always do as a democracy, we stand up and fight for our rights. We don’t lay down and pretend it’s over, we get out there and fight,” Scanlon said.

He noted how everyone used to say that all politics are local, but also said that, in many ways, all politics are now national. Scanlon said that the MAGA movement is creeping into their school boards, town councils, and state House of Representatives, so they can’t just worry about what happens in 2026 and 2028.

“We have to worry about what happens in Newtown in 2025,” Scanlon said. “In Litchfield, in Torrington, everywhere. We can’t take any election off … Every office matters. Everything we do now matters. We are in the fight for the future of this country.”

Additional speakers included Lia Kurjiaka and Cali Taylor of Junior Newtown Action Alliance, Selectman Michelle Embree Ku, Amber Vlangas of the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut, Agni Pavlidou-Kyprianou, State Senator Sujata Gadkar-Wilcox, Jeremy Stein of States United to Prevent Gun Violence, and Po Murray of Newtown Action Alliance.

The event concluded with protesters marching up to and from the Main Street Flagpole holding their signs high, with many shouting, “This is what democracy looks like.”

=====

Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.