A calendar of protests, discussions and other events that aim to improve the world. Through Feb. 15, 2017.
Note: Many Feb. 9 events are postponed because of the forecast blizzard. Highlights this week include the “Academics United – No to Visa and Immigration Ban” rallies on local college campuses on Thursday; Angela Davis speaks and the “Rally & Speakout Against Billionaire Betsy DeVos” on Friday; rallies in support of Planned Parenthood and performances by the legendary political troupe Bread and Puppet Theater over the weekend; founding meetings for Indivisible groups; and Black Panther co-founder Bobby Seale speaks on Tuesday.
Updated: Feb. 9, 2017: To submit events to the list, email details and links to Weloveyoursubmissions At Gmail. Note: Event times and places sometimes change. Please follow the links to confirm details. Also we are unable to vet all of these events. And some trolls have been announcing fake events. Be careful.
Thursday, Feb. 9
Noon. Boston: “Academics United- No Visa and Immigration Ban.” To support citizens and refugees of the seven countries affected by Trump’s executive order. At Northeastern University.
Noon. Providence: “No Refugee, Visa, and Immigration Ban.” To protest Trump’s order. At Brown University.
Noon. Cambridge: “Academics United – No to Visa and Immigration Ban.” Academics from Harvard, MIT, Boston University and Tufts rally to support citizens and refugees of the seven countries affected by Trump’s executive order. At Harvard.
4 p.m. Providence: “Emergency Minimum Wage Hearing.” To support increasing minimum wage to $10.50. At Rhode Island State House.
6 p.m. Boston: “Origins of the Police – Political Education.” Mass Action Against Police Brutality covers the role of the police during the Civil Rights era in the late 1950s and early 1960s. In Roxbury.
6:30 p.m. Salem, Mass.: “Sanctuary City at the Salem City Council.” Hearing on making the city a “sanctuary city.” At Salem City Hall.
6:30 p.m. Boston: “Decolonizing Environmentalism.” Panel discussion about ways environmental groups can start to decolonize their work. At North American Indian Center, Jamaica Plain.
7 p.m. Providence: “People’s Portal 2.0: La Resistencia exhibit & performance.” Engaging the “socio-political climates in our respective countries, India and Puerto Rico.” At Sutton Street, Providence.
7 p.m. Boston: “Drop the MIC: Confronting Militarism in our Communities.” Panel discussion organized by Iraq Veterans Against the War. At First Baptist Church, Jamaica Plain.
7 p.m. Brookline: “Speaking for the Trees: Gas Leaks and Climate Change.” Talk At Brookline Main Library.
7 p.m. Boston: “No Ban! No Wall! – The Socialist Case For No Borders.” Talk hosted by International Socialist Organization-Boston. In Dorchester.
7:30 p.m. Cambridge: “Bread & Puppet Theater Presents: Faust 3.” The legendary political troupe transforms Goethe into a “journey through the mess of the modern empire.” At Cambridge YMCA. Additional performances through Feb. 12.
7:30 p.m. Providence: “Indivisible Information Meeting.” Discussion of what the Indivisible movement is about. At First Unitarian Church of Providence.
Friday, Feb. 10
9 a.m. Boston: “Citizenship and Immigration Information Session.” A USCIS (Citizenship and Immigration) officer will answer questions about immigration issues. At East Boston Public Library.
12:15 p.m. Boston: “Boston Chain of Peace.” “Stand in solidarity with Boston’s Muslim community.” At Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center.
4:30 p.m. Boston: “NoBanNoWall Vigil to Protest the Muslim Ban.” Organized by Amnesty International. At Dewey Square.
7 p.m. Boston: “Rally & Speakout Against Billionaire Betsy DeVos.” In opposition to Trump’s education secretary. At Boston Common.
7 p.m. Providence: “Freedom is a Constant Struggle: A Lecture with Angela Davis.” At Brown University.
Saturday, Feb. 11
9 a.m. Boston: “Resist the Bigots – Counter Protest for Abortion Rights.” In opposition to “pro-life” organizations’ national day of action for their campaign to “Defund Planned Parenthood.” “We refuse to let them go unchallenged.” At Planned Parenthood Greater Boston.
11 a.m. Fitchburg: “Stand with Planned Parenthood.” A counter-protest to “pro-life” groups. At Planned Parenthood.
11:45 a.m. Boston: “Human Wall of Compassion.” In support of Boston’s Muslim community, the group will form a line or “wall” across the street from the mosque during midday prayers. At Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center, Roxbury.
1 p.m. Cambridge: “Art for Human Rights Teach-In.” Discussing “making interventionist art within and without the Harvard community.” At Signet Arts Space.
1 p.m. Lexington: “Knit 200 Together.” “Knitting up a storm and learning to knit in order to spur change, build community, wage peace, start and continue the dialogue, make new friends and neighbors and heal the world.” At Cary Memorial Library.
2 p.m. Malden: “You Are Not Alone: An Afternoon of Solidarity.” The American Association for Arab Women “celebrates our diversity and highlights the unique experiences the people of Massachusetts have to offer—while also providing you and your family with the resources you need to take on the uncertainty of the next four years.” At Malden High School.
2 p.m. Arlington: “Indivisible MA District 5 Meeting.” At Maple Street, Arlington.
3 p.m. Cambridge: “Ten Reasons Why Capitalism Can’t Stop the Environmental and Social Destruction—And Why the Working Class Can.” Talk at Center for Marxist Education.
3 p.m. “Black Youth Take Power.” Black Lives Matter Cambridge hosts a “Black only space, centered around youth.”
4 p.m. Meford: “Let’s Huddle: Creative & Practical Action.” “Begin to transform the energy we saw at Women’s Marches into local and national action.” At Carroll’s Restaurant.
8 p.m. Somerville: “Laughing Liberally Boston February Edition.” Featuring “some of Boston’s top liberal and progressive comedians.” At Arts at the Armory.
Sunday, Feb. 12
11 a.m. Boston: “Families for Justice as Healing with Andrea James.” A talk by the founder of the group serving incarcerated mothers and their children. At Community Church of Boston.
Noon. Boston: “AAHW 2017: VSA and SASE Present- Love Trumps Hate.” Janson Wu, executive director of GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), leads a “discussion on the aftermath of the elections, with a specific focus on minority groups such as those who are LGBTQA and APIDA identity.” At the Asian American Center.
Noon. Boston: “Designing Black Futures.” Three artists and designers discuss “the nature of black futurity and the use of art, design, and culture to shift the social realities of black folks.” At Boston University’s 808 Gallery.
Noon. Boston: “Boston Homeless Solidarity Committee Weekly Organizing Meeting.” At Encuentro 5.
Noon. Chelsea, Mass.: “Write a Postcard to Your Senators.” At Gallery at Spencer Lofts.
1 p.m. Cambridge: “KnockEveryDoor.” Our Revolution Cambridge gets out “talking to our neighbors in Cambridge about the results of the election.” Begins at Pearl Street.
2 p.m. New Bedford: “17th Annual Frederick Douglass Read-a-thon.” Community members read “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.” At First Unitarian Church.
2 p.m. Providence: “Solidarity Sundays.” The first monthly gathering for “empowering people to take anti-racist, feminist, progressive political action.” At Tingley Street.
2 p.m. Boston: “Black Lives Matter Boston In Their Own Words.” At Arlington Street Church Unitarian Universalist.
2:30 p.m. Arlington: “15+ Years of Wars and Prospects for Peace, The Climate Crisis, Concerns of Social and Economic Justice under President Donald Trump.” Discussion organized by Arlington United for Peace and Justice. At Robbins Library.
3 p.m. Portsmouth, N.H.: “Civil Rights Sundays.” Weekly protest organized by Occupy New Hampshire Seacoast. At Market Square.
8 p.m. Somerville: “Stand Up with Planned Parenthood.” Night of comedy to benefit Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts. At Somerville Brewing.
Monday, Feb. 13
Noon. Boston: “Fight for $15 Action Against Incoming Labor Sec.” Protest against Trump’s nominee for federal labor secretary and low wages. At McDonalds, 146 Tremont St.
3:30 p.m. Leominster: “Love & Kindness Student Standout.” In downtown Leominster.
5 p.m. Boston: “Immigrants’ Rights: What You Need to Know.” Organized by the Health and Human Rights Caucus at Boston University.
6 p.m. Boston: “Contested Transformation: Race, Gender, and Political Leadership.” Panel discussion—including Boston City Councilors Ayanna Pressley and Michelle Wu—about “how gains in political leadership and influence by women and men of color holding elected office are transforming the American political landscape.” At UMass Boston.
6 p.m. Waltham: “Stand Up Fight Back: How Labor is Fighting Trump to Save the 99%.” Panel discussion at Brandeis University.
Tuesday, Feb. 14
Noon. Boston: “World Love for Dolphins Day – Boston 2017.” Sea Shepherd Conservation Society hosts this rally in opposition to Japanese dolphin hunting. At South Station.
3 p.m. Providence: “Heart of the City Valentine Drop to Save Public Schools.” Rhode Island Jobs With Justice delivers valentines to Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza asking him to oppose “anti-union, anti student policies.” At Providence City Hall.
4 p.m. Cambridge: “Bobby Seale in Conversation with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.” A talk by the original 1966 founding chairman and national organizer of the Black Panther Pary. At Harvard.
6 p.m. Boston: “We will Resist the Hateful Attacks of the Trump Regime with Love.” Centro Presente organizes a rally in solidarity with immigrants. At the Massachusetts State House.
6 p.m. Portsmouth, N.H.: “Solidarity Against Exploitation of Women.” Rally organized by Occupy new Hampshire Seacoast. At Market Square.
6:30 p.m. Somerville: “All Diamonds Are Blood Diamonds.” Talk about “the colonialist diamond industry and the theft of diamonds and exploitation of African labor.” At Parts and Crafts.
Wednesday, Feb. 15
5:45 p.m. North Smithfield, R.I.: “Stand For Muslim Children.” Candelight vigil. At Masjid Al-Islam.
6 p.m. Boston: “Boston Police Body Camera Community Forum.” At Grove Hall Community Center.
6 p.m. Pawtucket, R.I.: “Teach In: Mashapaug Nahaganset // Past and Present Resistance.” Sachem Neesu Wushuwunoag in discusses the history and current iniatives of the Mashapaug Nahaganset tribe. At Fang Collective.
7 p.m. Newton Highlands: “Indivisible 4th CD: First Meeting.” To “push legislators in Massachusetts to mobilize against the worst parts of the Trump agenda.” At Columbus Street.
Pictured at top: The “Boston Women’s March” rally at Boston Common, Jan. 21, 2017. (Copyright Greg Cook)