ORANGE — The nationwide “No Kings Day” protests brought an estimated 600 people to Memorial Park over the weekend as residents came together to voice opposition to a range of policies under the Trump administration.

Participants could be seen holding a variety of signs opposing any one of a dozen Trump administration policies, from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids to proposed cuts to Medicaid. Others waved rainbow flags in celebration of Pride Month or small American flags that were handed out.

A number of officials from Orange and surrounding communities took part, with some making the trip from Gardner to the east and Shutesbury to the southwest. State Rep. Susannah Whipps, I-Athol, was in attendance. By midday, several hundred people crowded both sides of South Main Street, from the intersection of East and West Main streets, over the Millers River Bridge and on to River Street.

At about 11:30 a.m., many of the protesters broke off into groups that marched to several locations, such as the U.S. Post Office and Wheeler Memorial Library, to voice opposition to federal budget cuts that have been enacted or proposed since the start of the Trump administration. Protesters reconvened at Memorial Park to hear from speakers, including Jeff Neipp, a U.S. Army veteran who is an officer in the local chapter of Rolling Thunder; Laura Davis, a climate activist from Petersham; and Hans Rickheit, of the Indivisible North Quabbin Steering Committee.

Pat Larson, the lead organizer of Saturday’s “No Kings Day” event for Indivisible North Quabbin, read briefly from U.S. Rep. James McGovern’s statement of support, in which he decried cuts to the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans. He also condemned the forced removal of California Sen. Alex Padilla from a press conference being held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

“We’re here to say ‘no’ to authoritarianism,” McGovern’s statement reads.

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.