Around 400 people rallied on Boston Common Wednesday evening to protest the US Senate’s acquittal of President Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstructing Congress.
The “Reject the Coverup” demonstration, organized by Common Cause Massachusetts, was one of several held across the country, an organizer said.
“We’re having the rally tonight because the Senate trial was a sham trial,” Kristina Mensik, assistant director of Common Cause Massachusetts, said in an interview before the rally. “These rallies won’t change the Senate vote but they hopefully will galvanize hundreds of thousands of Americans to participate in our democracy actively.”
During the two-hour rally, representatives of various advocacy groups in Massachusetts spoke to the crowd, urging them to remain vigilant. They spoke of anger and hope. They waved signs and chanted calls for Trump’s removal from office.
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The House of Representatives voted to impeach Trump after an investigation showed he had sought interference from Ukraine for the 2020 election.
Ron Fein, legal director for Free Speech for People, challenged lawmakers to call former National Security Advisor John Bolton and the president’s Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney to testify in front of Congress.
“Many of you have been coming to rallies like this for quite some time and I had hoped this would be more of a celebration than this type of gathering but the fight is not over and we need to move to the next phase,” he said, addressing the gathering. “We as a people need to be prepared to fight for our democracy in the streets because if we don’t stop him, he’ll do it again and he’ll do worse.”
Marjorie Trovato, 59, of Brookline had also attended a rally in December prior to the House vote on the articles of impeachment.
“I feel that the one of the only things we can do other than voting is come out and make our voices heard. I feel like I’m living in a nightmare,” she said in an interview. “I’m going to be very active in political campaigns this year to make sure we the people can turn things around.”
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Mensik, who also spoke at the rally, said she was happy with the turnout.
“It was an event that allowed us to really remind ourselves of the importance of collective action,” she said. “I came into today feeling overwhelmingly despondent but seeing everyone out here was really inspiring.”
Stephanie Purifoy can be reached at stephanie.purifoy@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @stephbpurifoy