My task was simple. Drive to Springfield and pick up a young man who had to report in person to an ICE office in Framingham. He was required to go there once a week for several weeks. I don’t speak Spanish and he spoke minimal English, so Google translate helped us talk to each other there and back. We learned about one another’s family, heard each other’s story, and by the end of the return trip, became friends.

Approximately three months later — last week — Juan David was deported. 

We have the opportunity to take action and be heard. If you can do just one of these, you’ll help our country return to its most important principles: the rule of law and justice for all. 

The “No Kings Day 3” nationwide day of protest is this Saturday, March 28, with multiple events planned across western Massachusetts and surrounding areas. The movement, organized by the No Kings Coalition, aims to protest against federal overreach, targeting immigration crackdowns and actions against the Constitution. Pick one — bring friends.

  • Amherst: Amherst Town Common, 1 p.m.
  • Belchertown: Belchertown Town Common, 10 a.m.
  • Greenfield: Greenfield City Hall, noon
  • North Adams: North Adams City Hall, 12:30 p.m.
  • Northampton: Rallies are planned in Northampton
  • Orange, Memorial Park, 11 a.m.
  • Pittsfield: The Common (100 First St.), 2 p.m.
  • Worthington: Town Hall, 10 a.m.

You can also use your voice to push for state laws that hold ICE accountable and limit federal overreach. The state Legislature is considering a bill called the Protect Act. The Massachusetts PROTECT Act (H.D. 5608/H.5158), introduced in 2026, aims to restrict local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities (ICE). It limits information sharing, prohibits civil immigration arrests at courthouses, and bans new 287(g) agreements, seeking to protect immigrant communities from deportation. Go to https://miracoalition.org/protecting-our-immigrant-communities-campaign/ for step by step instructions and a script to follow if you want to advocate for this legislation.

Maybe you feel like protests and calling legislators is for activists or that these issues don’t really affect you directly. Maybe you have more urgent concerns — the costs of everyday life, medical issues, just taking care of your family. There is no question there are many worries that demand our attention right now. Yet we are all harmed when the welfare of our communities is torn apart and basic human rights are violated.

These words, written for another moment in history, remind us why it’s important to take a stand:

First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out — because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out — because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out — because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me. (Martin Niemöller)

Time to speak out.

Peter Garbus of Greenfield is a retired educator and community organizer.