Culture & Community | Politics | Arts & Culture | New Haven Green | Youth Arts Journalism Initiative | May Day
Members of Singing Resistance New Haven. Claire Armstrong Photos.
“We don’t need! We don’t need! We don’t need-no-billion-aaa-irrr-es!” sang Jo Wilber, dressed in a puffy blue-and-pink unicorn costume that glowed turquoise in the sunshine. A red-and-white bullhorn stood in for a microphone in Wilber’s hand. Around them, the crowd transformed the song into a call-and-response, until it seemed like the whole street was singing.
Downtown New Haven wide awake Friday afternoon, as students, union members, public servants, educators and organizers gathered to champion May Day, worker solidarity, human rights and economic justice in and far beyond the Elm City. As conversations overlapped with remarks and melodies drifted from the stage, community members came out in a strong show of multigenerational support, often with students and artists leading the way.
“We are in a very dangerous time, so it is important for people to get out and support one another,” said Frank Panzarella (pictured at left, in red), one of two guitarists playing on stage with fellow musician Jim Baldoni. Panzarella, who is a longtime peace activist in New Haven, has helped organize May Day gatherings in New Haven with his wife, Paula Panzarella, for 25 years.
“May Day isn’t just about no kings, it's about the workers and the rights they fought for in 1886 when workers were first hanged for fighting for their rights,” he said.
For Panzarella—and so many organizers who came out to the Green Friday—that’s where the story begins. In 1886, hundreds of thousands of workers across the U.S. began a general strike demanding an eight-hour workday On May 3, police fired on labor strikers in Chicago, with fatal consequences: at least two people died, and many more were injured. The following day, eight labor organizers were arrested (likely on false charges) when a bomb exploded at Haymarket Square, after hours of peaceful protest. As May Day honors their sacrifices, it simultaneously advocates for continual efforts to fight for the dignity of workers.
“Now we can celebrate our success and labor of the world nationally,” Panzarella said.
On stage, that message—amplified by the team from the pro-union small business New England Sound—rang out over and over again, from student speakers to union leaders who took the mic. At one point, it echoed through the words of Brandon Daley, a junior and student leader at Metropolitan Business Academy who is the president and founder of New Haven’s Community Youth Leadership Assembly (CYLA).
New England Sound, previously known as Orange Truck Audio, provided the stage equipment for the speeches and performances. “We are pro-union, we believe in the same goals, and we love helping out here in the New Haven community,” said Anthony, one of the two managers who started the company. “We are in tune with the spirit of the day, with the beauty and the community, so we are sympathetic to the movement.”
As Daley spoke on everything from school funding (The state’s ECS Formula is not working for us, I repeat, it is not working for us as students!”) to the carceral state and school-to-prison pipeline (”We want restorative justice, not punishment pipelines!”), he urged his classmates to stand up and get involved, even if it felt scary or new.
“We will not stay silent, for today is May Day that reminds us that real change happens… when everyone comes together in solidarity to fight for what we deserve and what is right,” he said. “We fight for dignity, for care over punishment, for communities to invest in our people.”
On the Green, meanwhile, people from all walks of life showed up for each other, including to keep everyone safe and in good spirits. Among dozens of students, who had participated in a coordinated walkout with the help of City-Wide Youth Coalition (CWYC) and their schools, there were groups such as the May Day Strong Coalition and the Connecticut Chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
“May Day is about celebrating workers' victories, eight-hour work days, the right to strike, we work to unify over 70 groups and organizations to make this Mayday even more impactful,” said Jason Ruiz, one of the main organizers for the volunteers through the DSA.
Top: Members of Singing Resistance. Bottom: “I’m here for them, and I’m here for Palestine, to show support," said Patience Turner, an artist and activist. "As an artist I wanted to use what I had to make these posters, so I wouldn't feel powerless. People say art isn’t political, I think it should be."
On the stage and in the crowd, meanwhile, artists of all ages led the charge. Even before they took the stage to perform, members of Singing Resistance New Haven held hand-painted signs instructing neighbors on what to do if law enforcement officials, from city police to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, show up in their neighborhoods, on their streets, or at their door (as they have more frequently in New Haven since President Donald Trump’s inauguration last year).
The signs accompany a song that the group first learned from the theater company Bread & Puppet last year, with sentences like Ask if you’re free to go / Ask for a lawyer! and Warn all your neighbors / Call the hotline / And record.
“Singing means everything to me, I think everyone can sing,” said Emily Ide, who is a member of the group. “We get taught that it is a talent not everyone has, but that isn’t true. We can all sign, once we all sing I think we will be closer to a liberated world.”
The group, which was inspired by similar movements in Minneapolis, sings because members are trying to “live in the world we want now, using art and being creative,” added Clancy Emmanuel, a leader in the group who also performs with the band Old Milk Mooney. “We want to model joy, and use music to deescalate.” Anyone can join: the group rehearses on Wednesday nights from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church on Whitney Avenue.
Nearby, Westville artist Janet Brodie brought back dozens of giant paper cranes, which first made an appearance at the No Kings New Haven rally in late March. Brodie, a fixture in New Haven’s artistic landscape, was inspired to create the cranes after doing a similar activity with the artist Susan Klein in 2003, to oppose U.S. military intervention in Iraq.
This time, she enlisted the help of several members of the public, including in sessions at Creative Arts Workshop earlier this year.
“We decided it was time to bring them back as cranes are a symbol of peace,” she said.
Throughout, it was often New Haven’s young people who were some of the loudest and most compelling voices of the afternoon. Isonnette O'Brien (a.k.a Icy), a senior at Common Ground, pointed to the importance of intersectional solidarity, which pushes back against the use of both whiteness and concentrated wealth as a tool to divide oppressed people.
“It's about standing for what’s right, not letting people drag us people of color, us Hispanics, us gays down,” said Icy, adding that they raise their voice for those who are unable to be physically present at demonstrations like Friday’s
Nearby, a group of students from Cooperative Arts & Humanities High School—which had 50 students join the walkout—echoed that sentiment.
Including often means involving the youth and leaders of today and tomorrow. “We are here because we want to be on the right side of history,” said a senior who did not wish to give their name.
Top: Isonnette O'Brien. Bottom: Common Ground High School Juniors Ava Montanez and Imani Gayle.
Juniors Ava Montanez and Imani Gayle participated in the Common Ground High School walkout where students took the bus from school to the New Haven Green. “I’m here to be a part of a greater people, to show my support” said Ava, followed by Imani expressing that “I’m here to support change and be here for the community. It’s better to be out here today even if it doesn’t cause great change.”
Some young people came from even further afield. Self-described witch Kaza Ayersman had made the trip from East Haven to show her support. “Power to the people, spread love and your personal magick. Blessed Beltane,” she said.
“Blessed Beltane” is a reference to the Ancient Celtic festival, a celebration of life, growth, and love that occurs in May as a mark for the beginning of summer.
Claire Armstrong is a senior at Common Ground High School and a graduate of the Arts Council's 2025 Youth Arts Journalism Initiative.