Rally draws a crowd to South Huntington for protest of President Donald Trump's early actions

Demonstrators stacked the corners of a busy South Huntington intersection Thursday afternoon to decry Republican President Donald Trump's norm-rattling White House return and urge taking action to prevent cuts to Medicaid and other federal programs.

The anthems and chants were familiar but the list of grievances — over Trump's efforts to reduce the federal government's power in some areas while increasing it in others — sounded new.

Pamela Selkin, 74, of Melville, said she has been to demonstrations dating back to the Vietnam War. Thursday’s, which began at 5 p.m. and ran about 90 minutes, marked something different, she said.

Trump is "doing nothing but inflicting cruelty not only on America, but the whole world” through his immigration policies. She expressed concern over the case of Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian student at Columbia University who was detained at his U.S. citizenship interview but has since been freed.

Selkin and close to 1,000 others crowded the curbs in all directions at the intersection of Jericho Turnpike and Route 110 as cars and trucks passed by, drivers providing a constant horn presence at an event featuring Twisted Sister’s "We’re Not Gonna Take It” and The Beatles’ "Revolution.”

The demonstration was the work of a handful of grassroots organizers, who used social media to spread the word about the protest, among similar rallies nationwide and globally Thursday in support of May Day, and in many cases, against Trump’s agenda, from aggressive tariffs that have led to fears of a recession to the administration’s immigration crackdowns.

Eve Krief, with Engage Long Island, an online activist group, and one of the organizers, joined other leaders to hand out copies of a typed letter people can send to Long Island's four members of the U.S. House of Representatives to urge them to oppose potential cuts to Medicaid. Protesters signed individual copies and amended a blank section with a personal story and additional concerns. They each received one of four distinct versions of the letter, each addressed to the sender’s respective representative.

Letters to Rep. Nick LaLota (R-Amityville) and Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-Bayport) mention they both voted for a budget resolution that would slash $880 billion from the federal department overseeing Medicaid. A few days later, both representatives sent a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson vowing to preserve Medicaid funding in their districts while seeking out ways to reform the program.

"You can’t have it both ways,” Krief said at the rally. "They’re either misleading us, or they’re being misinformed themselves ... There are no reforms that are going to yield them $880 billion and there is no way to have that level of spending cuts without seriously impacting the people that rely on Medicaid for their health care."

Some 680,000 Nassau and Suffolk County residents use Medicaid for to help cover health care, according to a previous Newsday article. 

In a statement emailed to Newsday through a spokesperson Thursday evening, Garbarino said there has been a "false narrative” regarding potential cuts to Medicaid.

"As the reconciliation process moves forward, I remain committed to preserving Medicaid and ensuring it remains a strong, enduring program for years to come. That’s why I recently joined several of my colleagues in sending a letter to House Leadership opposing any potential reduction in Medicaid coverage for vulnerable populations in the final reconciliation bill," the statement said.

A LaLota spokesperson did not immediately return a request to comment.

Suffolk County GOP chairman Jessie Garcia said tens of thousands of Long Islanders "overwhelmingly” support the policies of President Trump, including the pledge to "root out fraud, waste and abuse” from Medicaid. On Long Island, Trump received 105,402 more votes than his opponent in the 2024 election, former Vice President Kamala Harris, according to the state board of elections.

"This is not a constituent that’s concerned that their Medicaid services are being cut,” Garcia said of the protesters sending letters to members of Congress. "This is a Democratic leaning operative, or a member of a Democratic organization ... that are given a letter and given direction.”

The White House press office could not be immediately reached through the White House switchboard late Thursday evening.

With AP