Mikk Olli “Forward / Backward”

In 2017, I was living in Boston, capturing the life of the city as a street photographer. That year, the streets became a battleground for resistance, and I had the opportunity to document some of these moments.

On January 21st, one day after Donald Trump’s inauguration, the Women’s March brought millions of people to the streets across the U.S. and beyond, making it one of the largest protests in history. It was a direct response to Trump’s presidency, sparked by the threats his rhetoric and policies posed to women’s rights, reproductive freedom, LGBTQ+ rights, and racial justice.

On January 29th, protests in bigger cities across the United States erupted against the so-called Muslim Ban, which restricted travel from several Muslim-majority countries and suspended refugee admissions. Demonstrators gathered across the country to oppose the order, which was widely condemned as discriminatory and unconstitutional.

On August 19th, over 40,000 counter-protesters marched in Boston against a far-right rally, which took place just a week after the deadly “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. That rally turned violent when a white supremacist drove his car into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer and injuring dozens of others. Though officially labeled a “Free Speech Rally,” many saw the Boston event as a platform for white supremacist and far-right groups. The overwhelming counter-protest made it clear that the city rejected hate.

Now, in 2025, Trump is back in power. Revisiting the photos I captured, I see the same fears, the same fights, the same urgency. The protests of 2017 could just as easily be the protests of today. The cycle continues.

This exhibition is not just a reflection on the past, but a call to recognize where we stand now. Have we moved forward, or are we simply repeating history?

Mikk Olli is a designer and street photographer.