Berkshires Gear Up for No Kings 3

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Thousands of Berkshire County residents are expected to join millions of other Americans on Saturday in the third "No Kings" day of protest. 

From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., there will be standouts, speakers, music, and more in eight Berkshire communities and in nearby Bennington, Vt. The nonviolent No Kings movement mobilized last year in opposition to the actions of President Donald Trump and his administration, with more than 7 million people participating throughout thousands of No Kings events on Oct. 18, 2025. 

Activists say the mass mobilization is a key to blocking authoritarianism and upholding the U.S. Constitution.   

"Many of us fear for our democracy," said Standup Berkshires organizer Robin OHerin. "We are gathering in protest because action is the antidote to fear. In this country we elect presidents, and we do not allow them to crown themselves king."

After the last No Kings Day, the president responded on his Truth Social account with an AI-generated video of him in a crown, spewing diarrhea on protesters from a jet, and the White House's official Twitter (X) account posted AI images of Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance in crowns. 

"A core principle behind all No Kings events is a commitment to nonviolent action. We expect all participants to seek to de-escalate any potential confrontation with those who disagree with our values and to act lawfully at these events," the landing page for the No Kings North Adams event reads. 

In North Adams, the event will begin at 12:30 p.m. with guest speakers and music in the City Hall parking lot. Seating and parking are limited, with a few accessible spots at City Hall. The standout portion will begin at 1:15 p.m. on the sidewalk, and those who anticipate needing a seat are encouraged to bring one. 

In October, more than 1,000 people were estimated at the rally at North Adams City Hall, where they held signs along the Hadley Overpass and around the intersection at Main Street. 

The Pittsfield event will run from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Participants will gather across from the Common, march to North Street, and return to the Common to rally and enjoy the Becket/Washington Rapid Resistance Choir. Participants are encouraged to wear yellow — a global symbol of peaceful resistance. (Berkshire Bateria and the Pittsfield Gospel Choir had to cancel.)

Speakers will Include John Bonifaz, a constitutional attorney and founder and president of national non-profit Free Speech for People; the Rev. Margo Page, president of Berkshire Interfaith Organizing; Rose Fiscella, a history student at MCLA and the leader of the grassroots group Frogs for Freedom; and Tara Jacobs, the Governor's Councilor for District 8. 

As part of a weeklong recognition of Trans Day of Visibility, Wander will host a combined crafting and karaoke night and No Kings sign-making workshop in partnership with Berkshire Sanity Posse on Thursday, March 26, from 6 to 8 p.m. 

The No Kings Boston rally at the Boston Common is set for 1 to 4 p.m., and is organized by a coalition of Indivisible Mass Coalition, ACLU of Massachusetts, and Mass 50501.

Indivisible MA noted that "Dozens of other local Indivisible groups and allies — from Pittsfield, Northampton, Lancaster, and Worcester to Framingham, Methuen, Lexington, and towns in southeastern Mass and the Cape" have also scheduled No Kings events. 

Other events: 

• Adams Town Common, 11 to 12:30 
• Dalton CRA sidewalk, 12:30 to 1:30
• Great Barrington Town Hall, noon to 1:30 p.m.
• Stockbridge Town Offices, 11 to 12:30 
• West Stockbridge Congregational Church, noon to 1:30
• Bennington, Vt., Skate Park, noon to 3:30.

Community Meeting Addresses Prejudice in Pittsfield Schools

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:49PM / Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Johanna Lenski, a special education surrogate parent and advocate, says there's a 'deeply troubling' professional culture at Herberg that lets discriminatory actions and language slip by.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Around 60 community members gathered at Conte Community School on Monday night to discuss issues with prejudice in the district. 

The event was hosted by the Pittsfield Public Schools in partnership with the Berkshire NAACP and the Westside Legends. It began with breaking bread in the school's cafeteria, and caregivers then expressed fears about children's safety due to bullying, a lack of support for children who need it the most, and teachers using discriminatory and racist language. 

"One thing I've learned is that as we try to improve, things look really bad because we're being open about ways that we're trying to improve, and I think it's really important that we acknowledge that," interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips said, reflecting on her work in several other districts before coming to PPS last summer.  

"It is very easy to stay at the surface and try to look really good, and it may look like others are better than us, when they're really just doing a better job of just kind of maintaining the status quo and sweeping things under the carpet."

Brett Random, the executive director of Berkshire County Head Start, wrote on her personal Facebook page that her daughter reported her math teacher, "used extremely offensive language including both a racial slur (n-word) and a homophobic slur (f-word) and then reportedly tried to push other students to repeat those words later in the day when students were questioning her on her behavior."

The school department confirmed that an eighth-grade teacher at the middle school was placed on leave.  

The Berkshire Eagle, which first reported on the incident, identified the teacher as Rebecca Nitsche, and the teacher told the paper over the phone, "All I can tell you is it's not how it appears." Nitsche told the paper she repeated the words a student used while reporting the incident to another teacher because officials needed to know it happened. 

Johanna Lenski, speaking as a special education surrogate parent and parent advocate, on Monday said there is a "deeply troubling" professional culture at Herberg that has allowed discriminatory, racist, non-inclusive, and ableist treatment of students.

She said a Black transgender student was called a "piss poor, punk, puke of a kid," and repeatedly and intentionally misgendered by one of the school's teachers, and then wrongfully accused of physically assaulting that teacher, which resulted in a 10-day suspension. 

Another Herberg student with disabilities said the same staff member disclosed to an entire classroom that they lived in a group home and were in state Department of Children and Families' custody. When the teacher was asked to come to an individualized education program meeting for that student, Lenski said he "spent approximately 20 minutes attacking this child's character and portraying her as a problem, rather than a student in need of services and protection and support."