Students came together to call on universities across Boston to defend their students against federal attacks on higher education at the Students Rally for Light, Truth and Courage hosted by Northeastern’s student association, the Education Freedom Project (EFP) Nov. 15., in partnership with dozens of other local organizations. This event included various speakers such as elected officials, labor leaders, and student body presidents, as well as live music.

Jack Masliah, co-founder and outreach coordinator of the EFP said, “We understand that our administration will only act if they feel that we are organized enough and that we really want this to happen.”

Masliah is a senior at Northeastern who saw a disconnect between the needs of the students and the actions of the administration, seeing the EFP as a way of sparking real change.

“I think something that makes the EFP different is that we are not just shouting into the void.  We have a strategy and we have a plan,” said Masliah.

At Northeastern, students had to sign a form in order to get onto campus that forced them to agree not to participate in unsanctioned activism on Northeastern property under threat of expulsion, according to Ainsley Tischer, a Northeastern sophomore and the social media and marketing manager for Phi Alpha Delta, the University’s pre law fraternity.

“I think suppression of student voices is really a reflection of the authoritarian and conservative values that are showing up within our country,” said Tischner.

Lining the sides of the rally were over 20 clubs and organizations who support EFP’s mission. The majority were Northeastern student clubs whose leaders recognized the Trump administration’s attacks on what they stood for.

On the field in front of the stage, a crowd of students and faculty members across 16 Boston based higher education institutions attended in solidarity with the mission of transparency and change within their institutions.

The rally, while initially created to address issues plaguing Northeastern University, grew into representing all Boston institutions as the speakers each described problems that applied beyond just any one school.

The rally opened with a number of speakers from Northeastern University. Jeffrey Franchetti, a member of the EFP and a Northeastern student, introduced and connected the speakers with humor and direction.  

Anna Salvato, a Northeastern student and EFP member, highlighted the university’s hypocrisy in its motto.

“At Northeastern our university motto is ‘light, truth and courage.’ It is a mission that we believe in. But failing to provide resources to international students, adopting policies that restrict free speech and expression, dismantling our office of diversity, equity and inclusion, and leaving students out of nearly every decision is not light, truth and courage,” said Salvato.

Salvato then pointed out that these misgivings are not only at Northeastern; she commented on Boston University’s College Republican club president calling ICE on a local car wash.

“We see it at every institution that has conceded to the Trump administration’s demands; that welcomes the department of homeland security into an on-campus career fair; that stays silent when one of their students, the president of a recognized student group, calls ICE to detain local workers with legal status,” said Salvato.

The next speaker was Emma Albert, a Northeastern student and former president of Northeastern Diversability. She incorporated intersectionality into the rally, showing how the problem of administrations ignoring students is multifaceted.

“Advocacy here often feels like shouting into a void. You’re told your feedback is valuable but you never see change. You’re invited to panels and photo ops but not to policy meetings and discourse on belonging,” said Albert.

The rally heard from Ellen Mei, president of the National Treasury Employees Union Chapter 255 who was recently almost fired by the Trump administration for speaking about the importance of SNAP benefits.

Mei spoke on the importance of speaking out especially in today’s political climate, urging students in their fight against injustice.

“As federal workers we have a responsibility and a duty to speak out about what we’re seeing within the federal government just how you all as students have a responsibility to speak out about what you all see on campus and what your universities are, or mostly are not doing to take care of you all as students,” said Mei.

Darlene Lombos, president of the Greater Boston Labor Council, pointed out the pivotal role students play in societal change and connected that to the Trump administration’s attacks.

“That’s why the far right groups and anti-democratic factions are deliberately targeting you. They are using college campuses as battlegrounds to spread disinformation, recruit young people into their ranks, and silence pro-democracy movements,” said Lombos.

Ayanna Pressley, congresswoman for Massachusett’s 7th congressional district, was warmly welcomed when she stepped on stage. She spoke about how being educated and rallying in such a manner was exactly what the Trump administration was afraid of.

“This hostile government would like for us to be a people who are ignorant and uninformed; a people who are indifferent to the suffering of our neighbors; a people that are inactive. So when you are here and you are engaged and active, when you are compassionate about the suffering of your neighbors, when you are well informed, you are resisting and rejecting their dark dystopian view of this country,” said Pressley.

Pressley encouraged people to choose an outlook of hope rather than despair.

“This is not about how to weather the next four years. This is about shaping the next one hundred. And our colleges and universities have always been fundamental in the struggle for civil rights,” said Pressley.

Pressley closed her speech by stating three key factors to a successful movement: imagination, strategy and stamina. She said that by gathering together, Boston universities were already displaying all three traits.

“The power of the people has always been greater than the people in power,” Pressley said. 

The rally brought together concerned students and faculty members from 16 higher education institutions, in a fight for a common goal of urging their colleges and universities to protect and defend their students.

Masliah believes the EFP achieved its goals simply due to the fact that people showed up.

“We want students to be involved in this fight, we want them to be educated about what’s going on, and we want to stand up and protect our communities and our universities,” said Masliah.