“Our Freedom, our future. We are not going back.” CT delegation inspired at People's March in DC

 

When the People’s March was announced for January 18th 2025, the Communist Party USA immediately began mobilizing for a large contingent in DC. The march would cap the strong 60-day response to Trump’s election victory which focused on strengthening our coalitions and building a united front against his fascist agenda. It would be a show of strength against Trump and the MAGA movements threat of mass deportations, attacks on civil and labor rights, and reproductive rights. We would stand with over a hundred working class organizations who have been involved in the struggle for freedom, democracy, and equality. 

The Connecticut contingent of 21 adults and two toddlers,traveled by train to the march. Donations from all across the state flew in to support the group, including some who themselves could not go.

The morning of the march was grey, cold, and damp. That, however, did not reflect the mood inside the city. There was a certain excitement as we could see people walking toward the metro stations, wearing pink hats, some carrying banners. The Connecticut contingent met up before the march, reaffirming the importance of this event. Then, we were off to Farragut square where our Communist Party contingent from many states would meet and where the march would kick off. 

 Every corner of the square was active with speeches and journalists doing interviews. The Communist Party contingent banners were splayed out on the grass. The biggest one, “Our Freedom, our future. We are not going back.” summed up what people were feeling that day on the eve of Trump’s second term. 

The march, which according to organizers was over 50,000 strong, felt like a repudiation of what January 6, 2021 represented. When Trump and his cronies lost the election, they called on their fascist militias to try to overthrow the government in a violent coup. The people lost this election, but we chose the path of democracy and building a mass movement to bring about the change we want to see. This event brought together a very diverse group and causes with a common thread of building people power against Trump’s corporate agenda. 

This was the theme of the rally at the reflecting pool of the Lincoln Memorial where the march ended. Ben Jealous, former President of the NAACP and current Executive Director of the Sierra Club spoke about the fight for a greener and healthier Mother Earth. The march revealed a growing melding of climate change and environmental activism with the anti-war peace movement as we fight to live in healthy, sustained communities.

Beth Miller, Political Director of Jewish Voice for Peace spoke about joining the march with the Palestinian freedom movement to make clear that all of our liberations from the US to Palestine and everywhere in between are connected, and that facism both at home and abroad requires a big broad united front.

Analilia Mejia, co-executive Director of the Center for Popular Democracy, warned against apathy in the face of defeat, reminding attendees that freedom and justice is not a final destination but a practice that requires us to wake up everyday and make a decision to either uphold democracy and a government for the people or sit it out altogether. Several speakers called on members of Congress to demonstrate the same level of courage that our communities have long demonstrated in the global fight for justice and liberation.

As we boarded the train back to Connecticut, there was a sense of awe that comes from being part of something bigger, a movement, a historic event. It felt like this was the culmination of years of organizing. The election did not go our way, and we have to reckon with that. But the work that was done to build coalitions, to build unity against the power of the capitalist class, has not dissolved. At the march it was palpable. Our contingent came away with a renewed sense of purpose and comradeship that comes from accomplishing something together. We were proud to have made this trip a succes.