Marking May Day with protest, march, training, music and food

By Rich Tenorio

Organizer Nancy Roosa stood outside the Citizens Bank in Medford Square on a Friday late afternoon. Roosa, a longtime Medford resident, engaged patrons of the bank in conversation about one of its practices: financing private prisons used to detain targets of ICE raids.

This was part of a protest timed for May Day, a holiday dedicated to workers’ rights in many nations of the world. Last Friday, May 1, a crowd of about 30 to 40 stood outside the prominently located bank, on the adjoining sidewalk as well as the traffic island across the street. Many held signs, and drivers often honked their horns in approval.

While protestors have held standouts outside Citizens since January, the May Day protest was one element in a multifaceted day of events that also included what organizers called "Noncooperation 101" training, a march with the Boston Area Brigade of Activist Musicians (BABAM), and a potluck, music, and speakers at the Pop-Up Park on Riverside.

Roosa is a member of Mystic Mashup Indivisible, which is part of the nationwide Indivisible movement. The Medford group was established in the wake of the 2024 election of President Donald Trump, whose administration has prosecuted undocumented immigrants through policies that have drawn opposition nationwide.

Roosa identified her goal as getting patrons to “sign petitions and ask them to take their money out” of Citizens Bank. Regarding the latter aim, she said, “We tend not to ask directly. It’s hard to actually ask. But if they disagree [with the bank’s policy], we ask them to make their displeasure known to bank executives. We have [the executives’] names and email addresses.”

State Rep. Christine Barber, who was present at the protest, said she is pursuing separate anti-ICE policy at the state level.

The aim of such policy is to “stop ICE from working with local and state law enforcement, or any public official,” Barber said. As for her presence outside Citizens, she added, “It’s really about solidarity. People are being detained everywhere in detention centers, even in other states, financed by Citizens.”

When Roosa recognized one bank patron, she and fellow protestor Ross Phillip detailed their accusations against Citizens: The bank is the only one in the US still financing private prisons that ICE uses.

Wearing an event marshal’s vest, Phillip told Gotta Know Medford about his extensive activism, including participating in an “ICE Watch” program to monitor ICE activity in Medford.

Standing closer to the street, protestors Barry Ingber, Tracy Noble, and Ellen Epstein each held signs for motorists to see.

“I encourage people to take their money out of Citizens Bank, because they fund ICE prisons,” Epstein said, echoing the message of her sign.

Ingber, who described himself as doing this kind of activism “forever,” added, “I’m out here … to celebrate May Day appropriately, and here specifically because Citizens needs to get out of the funding-private-prison business.”

“I think the response is very positive,” Ingber said as a motorist honked in approval. “I have not spoken to a lot of Citizens customers today. When I have, in the past, they’re often surprised what the bank is doing with their money. Many of them have asked to get out of the bank.”

One local institution that did this is the Unitarian Universalist Church of Medford. After having accounts with Citizens for decades, the church board has voted to switch to Metro Credit Union.

“We realized Citizens is not really aligned with our values anymore,” said church treasurer Cathy Collins. “We had to figure out where to move the money to … A credit union is aligned with our values [more] than a corporate bank.”

While most drivers used their horns to signify solidarity, one blasted his horn and shouted “Idiots!”

Soon, there was another sound that competed with the car horns: BABAM members practicing on their instruments.

“We feel it adds a lot to the protest,” tuba player Alison Earnhart said of the group’s musical presence. “Joy is the most anti-fascist thing you can do.”

Earnhart practiced with a saxophonist and a trumpeter. At the other end of the crowd, two members of Medford for Palestine unfurled a banner with their group’s name. One of them, Stephanie, accompanied BABAM on a tambourine while holding her side of the banner.

“Workers struggle all over the world, not just in the U.S. but internationally,” said Stephanie, a Guatemalan immigrant who declined to give her last name. She said that many causes are interconnected, including “military intervention through bombing and genocide” and “military intervention in our neighborhoods through ICE.”

As the protest outside the bank drew to a close, the BABAM members’ ranks had swelled, with trombonists and a drummer joining the group in preparation for the march. Roosa spoke with people outside the bank up to the final minutes.