Over the weekend, a right-wing “Free Speech Rally” demonstration in Boston ended early after attendees were dwarfed by literally 40,000 counter-protesters who turned out to demonstrate against hate.
Check out this bird’s-eye view image of the 40,000:
Tens of Thousands March Against White Supremacy in Boston & Other U.S. Cities https://t.co/6Oagk9yirC pic.twitter.com/sbwuUG3nho
— Democracy Now! (@democracynow) August 21, 2017
The “free speech” organizers in Boston insisted that they had no connection to last week’s violent protests in Charlottesville, Virginia, where violence from white nationalists led to the death of a woman. But WBUR reported that a rally by the same organizers in back in May included one speaker who encouraged attendees to arm themselves for another civil war.
Meanwhile, a small group of people demonstrating against immigration in Laguna Beach, California were similarly outnumbered Sunday by hundreds of counter-protesters who came to denounce racism and applaud immigration.
Heartened by the peaceful, passionate turnout for the unity rally in my hometown Laguna Beach today. #RESIST #lovewins pic.twitter.com/aqCHVQzPxM
— Cathleen Falsani (@godgrrl) August 19, 2017
While the anti-immigrant group America First! tried to demonize undocumented immigrants, counter-demonstrators shouted “go away”, “no hate”, and carried signs that said “immigrants are welcome here.” As one counter-protester said to CBS Los Angeles:
We’re telling them to go home. us uniting together against them — this is what makes [America] great. … Every single one of us, from different ethnicities, different cultures, different religions, standing together really makes us the land of the free. Not them.
