Bangor protesters mark Tax Day, call for shift from defense spending

BANGOR, Maine (WABI) - It’s tax day, and in a yearly tradition some Mainers took to the streets of Bangor to oppose how their tax dollars are being spent.

Members and supporters from the Peace and Justice Center of Eastern Maine waved at drivers from the Kenduskeag Stream Bridge Wednesday afternoon hoping to encourage and incite change.

Organizers voiced their disapproval of the President’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2027, which includes a large increase in defense spending.

“Our tax money should be spent here. We’ve got problems here. We’ve got healthcare problems here, infrastructure problems here. We don’t need to be running around the world trying to figure out what they’ve got going over there. We’ve got a $1.5 trillion proposed budget now for the military, which is an astronomical amount of money,” said Adam Toothaker, President of Veterans for Peace Maine.

Others in attendance added they believe some funds currently being spent on the military would be better utilized domestically to build housing and make healthcare more affordable.