As protests against escalating violence from immigration agents erupt nationwide, New York City’s theater community came together on Saturday outside the steps of The Public Theater for an 8-hour “people’s filibuster.”

Hundreds of protesters joined the demonstration throughout the day, which began at 11 a.m. and continued over eight hours. A lineup of 70 speakers — including Broadway stars Lin-Manuel Miranda, Shaina Taub and Ariana DeBose and politicians U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler and State Attorney General Letitia James — roused the crowd, reciting passages from the 1st and 14th Amendments, reading excerpts from George Orwell’s “1984” and performing original music and poetry.

“Art is also the way we document revolution and rehearse for it,” Julia Crafton, a Tisch sophomore who attended the protest, told WSN. “So today, it wasn’t just a meeting of our community, but it was rehearsal for revolution, because that’s what theater is.”

Protesters held signs with messages such as “ICE out” and “resist.” Chants broke out in English and Spanish, including “ICE lay your weapons down,” “We conscientiously object” and “El pueblo unido jamás será vencido” — or, “The people united will never be defeated.”

The Public modeled the event, which was also livestreamed on YouTube, after a filibuster — a prolonged political speech meant to stall or obstruct legislative procedures — in an effort to “create a collective interruption that invites reflection, accountability and recommitment to the values we claim as a nation.” Brooke Sanders, a Steinhardt sophomore who attended the protest, told WSN that its framing served as a reminder of individual power.

“It shows that even one voice can have such a substantial impact on policy on the country,” Sanders said. “There is a community of people there for you, and you’re not alone.”

The demonstration is one of many nationwide as outrage grows surrounding increasingly violent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. The deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who were both fatally shot by ICE officers in Minneapolis last month, as well as reports of mass abductions have sparked protests with tens of thousands of participants.

Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who read a passage from Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s dissent in a case about police conduct, said in a statement to WSN that it was inspiring to see such large involvement from the artistic community.

“We must not remain silent while our civil rights are being trampled by the Trump administration,” Hoylman-Sigal said. “I encourage all Manhattan residents to continue to raise our collective voices in protest and join efforts to protect our immigrant neighbors.”

Preceding Saturday’s protest, thousands of New Yorkers gathered on Friday as part of a national shutdown to protest ICE. Last week, NYU’s chapter of Students for a Democratic Society organized an anti-ICE protest at Garibaldi Plaza and a classroom walkout in Washington Square Park. 

“So much of what our government is doing right now is trying to take people out of politics and make folks sound like threats,” Crafton told WSN. “But they’re just people, and I think what art does is it reminds us that we’re all people.”

Contact Chantal Mann at [email protected].