Thousands of veterans gathered and raised their fists to the rhythm of the punk rock band Dropkick Murphys on Washington, D.C.’s National Mall on Friday, rallying against the Trump administration’s federal job cuts and the potential loss of government services.
Many attendees of the Unite for Veterans, Unite for America Rally carried signs, including some that read “I Stand With Vets;” “Respect, Honor, Pay, Veterans;” and “VA Support Isn’t a Gift, It’s a Debt.” The protest rally, part of the growing public concern over the administration’s plans to dramatically reshape the federal government, also coincided with the 81st anniversary of D-Day.
Since President Donald Trump took office, layoffs from government jobs have affected veterans who make up a large percentage of the federal workforce, with some congressional estimates that around 6,000 former service members have lost their livelihoods. An internal memo obtained by Military.com in March showed that more than 80,000 Department of Veterans Affairs employees could be fired, which advocates say would harm important services.
Read Next: White House Asked Joint Chiefs Chairman for Candidates to Lead NASA, Worrying Experts
Lead singer of the Dropkick Murphys Ken Casey said it in his own way, telling the veterans in the crowd that he supported them before tearing into newly released music. Veterans in attendance associated the band with their service during the Global War on Terror.
“We have always stood with the vets, and the vets have always stood with the Dropkick Murphys,” Casey said. “When sh– ain’t right, we’re going to speak up. That’s what it’s all about and guess what? Sh– ain’t right!”
Former Army Sgt. Will Attig, who recalls being an 18-year-old riding in a Humvee and listening to Dropkick Murphys music during his deployment to Iraq, said it was a surreal moment to be standing on a stage next to Casey.
“There’s a connection with music,” said Attig, who was one of the organizers of the event. “Music is a part of the veterans community. … Music is one of the ways we fight back.”
The protest brought together veterans advocacy groups and service members from different generations like Randall Goldberg, a former Army soldier who said he left the service in 1970 and is angered by the Trump administration’s actions when it comes to veterans.
“There has to be resistance to those folks,” Goldberg said of the loss of federal jobs and projected cuts. “It’s nuts; it’s nothing fair.”
In addition to numerous generations of veterans in attendance, vocal veterans in Congress also spoke and made appearances at the event.
Sen. Ruben Gallego, an Arizona Democrat and a Marine Corps veteran, told Military.com in an interview on the National Mall that the potential cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs have pushed many former service members to speak out.
“We just tend to suck it up, right?” Gallego said of the veteran community. “I think this has pushed a lot of veterans to an existential moment, because we’ve never seen something like this.”
Sen. Tammy Duckworth, an Illinois Democrat and retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel who was wounded in combat, rallied the crowd as one of the scheduled speakers.
She spoke out about many of Trump’s policies and the so-called “One Big, Beautiful Bill,” legislation working through Congress to enact Trump’s agenda that she described as “a middle finger to our heroes” by offering tax cuts instead of keeping jobs.
The crowd, in response, raised their own middle fingers to the sky.
“You deserve better; you’ve earned better,” Duckworth said during her remarks. “Since our warriors landed on the beaches of Normandy on this very day 81 years ago, those who have worn the uniform have defied the odds to define America at her best. America is what she is today because of the blood of brothers and sisters shed in combat zones.”
Dropkick Murphys played many of their signature hits, including “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” and “Rose Tattoo,” but it was a newly released song played by the band titled “Who’ll Stand With Us?” that appeared to strike the biggest chord.
“Who’ll stand with us? Don’t tell us everything is fine, Who’ll stand with us? Because this treatment is a crime,” Casey belted to the crowd, with many attendees nodding in agreement.
Related: Dropkick Murphys, Lawmakers to Join Veterans in Washington on D-Day to Protect VA Benefits, Federal Jobs
Story Continues
Read the full article here