Joining participants in a swath of nationwide Labor Day protests, members of the Colgate College Democrats (CCD) and over 200 local community members assembled on the Hamilton Village Green to stage a Families Over Billionaires rally on Monday, Sept. 1, at 5 p.m.
The rally, which primarily occupied the right-hand sidewalk of Broad Street along the Hamilton Green’s northwest corner, featured signage — some strung across trees, reading “Families Over Billionaires,” and others handheld and handmade — chanting, singing, drumming and hundreds of rally-goers.
Among the Colgate University students in attendance was senior Desiree Rigaud, co-president of the CCD. While the CCD had little involvement in the planning of the rally, the group helped to publicize the event and contributed participants from its ranks, including Rigaud’s co-president junior Tess Mendelsohn and vice president Lexi Moore.
Along with members of the CCD, protest participants included organizers from the Town of Hamilton Democratic Committee (THDC), Hamilton Gets Organized, Madison County Democratic Committee (MCDC) and the Eaton Democrats. At the rally, organizers wearing yellow traffic vests were tasked in part with corralling and keeping participants on the sidewalk on the right-hand side of Broad Street.
According to local organizers such as MCDC and THDC member Chris Rossi, the rally was a response to perceived overreaches and wrongdoings by the federal government under the guidance of President Donald Trump, including proposed cuts to Medicare and now-retracted cuts to federal funding for education. More generally, the rally served to make known community-wide dissatisfaction with Trump’s second term.
“[The aim of the rally was] to take a stand against authoritarianism and in doing so, create a sense of community, be visible and alert our neighbors of the crisis we are facing,” Rossi said.
On the ground, protestors referenced issues as diverse as Trump’s deployment of military personnel to Washington, D.C., and the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Israel. Passersby in vehicles also supplied the rally with a stream of honks in response to certain sign messages, like “Honk if you’re NOT on the Epstein list,” a reference to Trump’s alleged involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal.
According to a press release written on behalf of the organizers by Phae Rossi, other issues addressed by the demonstration and its participants ranged from climate change and threats to government programs like SNAP to Trump’s highly publicized immigration enforcement policies.
“Many had signs that said that there were too many things to write on their signs and also voiced concerns about climate change, transparency and no pardons for pedophiles, food scarcity and protecting their children from gun violence, among many other issues,” the release read.
In addition to airing concerns about the Trump Administration, rally-goers were encouraged to donate food to charity boxes set up on the Green, supplied by the Hamilton Food Cupboard and Morrisville Community Church Food Pantry. These organizations will distribute the food from the boxes to local families in need.
On the day, the protesters skewed older, which was a topic of discussion between the CCD and other local Democratic organizations, according to Rigaud. She stated members of the CCD met with community organizers before the rally as part of an effort to introduce youth perspectives to future programming.
“Prior to the rally, four of our executives met with the Madison County Democrats and committed to bringing more youth voices to this rally to support their efforts. Executive board members from our chapter have now joined the rally planning committee and will be assisting in the logistics of future rallies and hopefully co-sponsoring some events,” Rigaud said.
In the midst of a burgeoning shift of generational political participation during the presidencies of Joe Biden and Donald Trump, each the oldest ever officeholder at the time of their respective inaugurations, Rigaud said that her attendance at the rally was partially motivated by the CCD’s renewed focus on youth political participation.
“I choose to attend because I am of the belief that youth mobilization and community organizing are incredibly powerful tools in having your needs recognized by those in power and fostering a stronger sense of connectedness to a place and the people in it,” Rigaud said.
Both rally organizers and Rigaud believed the protest was a success, with Rigaud citing it as an exercise of democratic principles. Rigaud hoped that the Families Over Billionaires rally would both give way to local political successes and ensure a partnership between Colgate students and community members.
“I hope that the Colgate community feels more comfortable using their voices to fight for issues that matter to them and that we are able to encourage more youth mobilization through this event and others throughout the academic year,” Rigaud said. “In addition, I hope that the local community is able to feel the support of Colgate students and our desire to help bring their vision for Hamilton to fruition.”
