Redding, Easton, Bethel 'Freedom March' To Protest Trump Inauguration

BETHEL, CT — About 50,000 protesters are expected to march in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 18 to demonstrate against the incoming White House administration.

Organizers of the local "2025 Freedom March" expect another, albeit smaller, crowd of protesters at Putnam State Park in Redding two days later.

Leading the charge will be Bethel Blues Sisters, in existence only since shortly after the 2024 election.

Organizer Denise Madeline says the impetus to form the group was "abject terror," but after speaking with a therapist, she realized she "couldn't just sit back." Social media convos were followed by the group's first sit-down meeting at the Molten Java coffeehouse in Bethel on Nov. 14, and the subsequent call to arms.

"It's kind of interesting how it's organically coming together, and we're finding people with strengths that maybe we individually don't possess, and people are more than willing to get involved," Madeline told Patch. "The walk is escalating to a much bigger event than I had even anticipated."

Madeline now expects around 50 marchers, from groups around Fairfield County.

Among those will be REBs, an acronym for Redding, Easton and Bethel. The organization was created in November "to provide a place where people can feel empowered and have the opportunity to get involved in issues that are important to them," according to founder Celeste Cobb.

"The march is a local option for people who want to express their concerns about the upcoming administration and the impact it can have on the everyday American, without having to travel to Washington, D.C. or New York," Cobb said.

The Women’s March in 2017 attracted an estimated half-million protesters to the nation's capitol, and over 4 million more in "sister marches" in at least 680 locations across the United States. Rebranded as the People's March for the start of Donald Trump's second term in 2025, the Inauguration Weekend's protests won't have the scope or impact of their predecessors, but their success may be measured differently.

"For us, it's emotional in a lot of ways," Cobb said. "People are feeling a bit isolated, a little afraid, and they're looking for support. And so that's what the march is meant to do, give people the opportunity to come together … to find other like-minded folks."

Madeline believes that Democrats at the national level lost in November because they didn't reach far enough beyond like-minded groups. For her, the Freedom March is a first step to building the bridges needed to win in 2028.

"They're not having the conversations that need to be had. And so this is just another extension of what our little groups are trying to accomplish," she said. "We need to start meeting people where they are, start talking to our neighbors more, start being the change that we want to see, and then being more inclusive with people who may be completely on the opposite side of the spectrum, but somehow we have to find a commonality and go forward."

The Freedom March will take place at Putnam State Park, 492 Black Rock Turnpike in Redding, on Monday, Jan. 20. Participants will gather at 11:30 a.m. and the march will begin at noon. All are welcome.