“When we fight, we win!” was shouted across the Wilkes-Barre Public Square on Saturday, April 5 at the ‘Hands Off!’ rally.
Over 1,000 ‘Hands Off!’ rallies were held across the country as a mobilization movement to protest against the Trump administration.
The phrase ‘hands off’ is used to object threatened budget cuts to several federally funded programs, like Medicare and SNAP. This also expanded to women’s rights, public education and immigration rights.
Action Together NEPA organized two protests in the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area.The rally in Scranton was held from 12 to 2 p.m., and the rally at the Wilkes-Barre was from 3 to 5 p.m.
Action Together NEPA is the organization behind the rallies in the Wilkes-Barre and Scranton area. Action Together’s organization is a progressive organization that focuses on community action and empowering advocacy.
They hold chapters in Luzerne, Lackawanna, Columbia, Montour, Susquehanna and Wayne counties.
In addition to Action Together NEPA, the Pennsylvanians Together Campaign were also involved in the afternoon’s rally. Mark Schaffer of the campaign took the mic to explain what the Trump administration has planned to do with federally funded resources such as social security and SNAP.
“They want to get rid of these programs to make themselves richer,” Schaffer said. “These programs are ours, not theirs.”
Several other speakers took the mic at the heart of the public square. Speakers such as Kayla Johnson, a veteran who spoke about how the Trump administration has been hurting veterans such as herself by placing cuts on veterans’ resources.
She expanded on her fight for veterans to those struggling finding psychological help and to LGBTQIA+ soldiers that are in jeopardy of being out of the military.
“One team, one fight!” Johnson cried out.
Other speakers such as Jimmy Signorelli, a nurse at Geisinger Medical Center, addressed how billionaires are hurting those working in the medical field. Signorelli was one of the attendees of the Geisinger nurses’ strike in February.
In addition to that, Lois Scrimm, a mother who uses SNAP, spoke up about her experience as a single mother on food stamps providing for her son.
“Without these programs, my son and I would’ve been on the streets. I was able to work for me and my son with these programs,” Scrimm said.
Finally, State Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski closed the rally. Pashinski reminded the crowd that the people represent this country, not the billionaires.
“What is happening in Washington is destroying America,” Pashinski said.
He continued his speech by reminding the people to call their representatives to stand up against the Trump administration and to keep fighting.
The Wilkes Democrats club held a sign-making session at Abide Coffeehouse before the rally. Kyra Hoyt, friend of the Wilkes Democrats and a King’s College student, attended the sign making session and opened up as to why she wanted to fight back.
“I’ve been looking for an outlet to make change,” Hoyt stated
After the rally, several attendees stayed on the square to hold their signs high and to collect more support from passersby in cars and on the streets.