Active With The Activists: Concord Crowd Rallies To Support U.S. Rep. Goodlander

By ARNIE ALPERT, Active with the Activists, InDepth NH

CONCORD, NH — Upwards of 100 people gathered in front of the State House on Wednesday and marched to U.S. Representative Maggie Goodlander’s Concord office to express support for the Congresswoman’s stand on the obligation of military service members to refuse illegal orders.

Goodlander and five other members of Congress released a video last week reminding members of the armed services that the oath they swore is to the Constitution, and that they can refuse illegal orders from superiors. That would include orders from the Commander-in-Chief, who has dispatched troops to American cities and launched attacks on civilian ships in the Caribbean.

Following President Trump’s social media posts accusing the six Congress members of sedition, punishable by death, Goodlander and four others received bomb threats. Local police are investigating.

The FBI is reportedly seeking to interview the six members. “President Trump is using the FBI as a tool to intimidate and harass members of Congress,” Goodlander said Tuesday.

Prior to seeking public office, Goodlander worked as a foreign policy aide to Senator John McCain and served ten years as an intelligence officer in the Navy Reserve. She has also clerked for a Supreme Court justice and taught constitutional law.

The other five members of Congress who were featured in the video are also former members of the armed forces or intelligence officers.

“We are veterans and national security professionals who love this country and swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. That oath lasts a lifetime, and we intend to keep it. No threat, intimidation, or call for violence will deter us from that sacred obligation,” the six Congress members said in a statement released November 20.

The Wednesday demonstration was organized on short notice by the Kent Street Coalition, a liberal advocacy group centered in Concord. Speaking to the crowd, Kent Street’s Louise Spencer said, “When people stand up and do brave things like the six Congresspeople have done, it’s essential that we have their backs and that we let them know they are not alone.”

“We need to have each others’ backs,” she said, before asking several military veterans to identify themselves by raising their hands.

The group later marched on the sidewalk down Main Street and massed in front of the building where Goodlander has her Concord office. “Thank you Maggie,” they shouted.

Arnie Alpert spent decades as a community organizer/educator in NH movements for social justice and peace. Officially retired from the American Friends Service Committee since 2020, he keeps his hands (and feet) in the activist world while writing about past and present social movements. You can reach him at arnie.alpert@indepthnh.org.

This article first appeared on InDepthNH.org and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.