A crowd of about 35 braved the frigid temperatures at Allen Street Gates last night to protest the inauguration of President George W. Bush.

Carrying signs such as "Leave No Billionaire Behind" and "Clean Air, Can't Sell It, Who Needs It?," members of the group talked and danced while passing cars occasionally honked.

Barbara Ballenger, organizer of the event termed the "State College Anti-Inaugural Ball," said she felt "pleasantly surprised" that the event attracted so many people and said it might "give people a chance to express what they feel."

"We decided if it was just the two of us dancing it would be effective ...," she said. "It's a little taste of what you would get if you went looking for counter-inaugural events in Washington, D.C."

Ballenger said she and her husband could not attend the counter-inaugural events in Washington, D.C, but she wanted to do something locally.

"We would have been there if we could," she said.

Ballenger said she felt the next four years will be "just as bad, if not worse than the last four years."

"I think in four years we've been duped. I think [Bush] is really skilled at saying one thing and doing another," she said. "We have created a foreign policy that has pretty much alienated the rest of the world."

State College resident Brenda Black said she was attending the event because she was "disappointed in the Bush administration and its policies."

"They are not favorable to education or to the children," she said.

State College Area High School senior Anthony Loreno said he had taken part in past John Kerry rallies and Bush protests.

"I can see myself doing a lot of this in the future," he said. "I would brave any kind of weather to do this."

Penn State alumnus Christian Mach said he wished more events like the protest would happen because "too many people have an apathetic attitude."

"It's good to see this. It's good to see people getting involved, regardless of political party," he said. "It takes a certain amount of courage to come out here and brave the cold and not be worried about negative criticism."

State College resident Mary McClanahan said she was present at the rally because she is opposed to the Bush administration.

"51-49 is not a mandate," she said. "I think 'Get out, voice your opinion' -- don't perpetuate the illusion of a mandate."

McClanahan said she had attended local events and volunteered for the Kerry campaign.

"I went to the Michael Moore and Teresa Heinz-Kerry [speeches]," she said.

Leah Mitchell, a 2003 graduate, said she participated in multiple protests as a student at Penn State.

"I participated in a protest when we went to war, right here on campus, when I was a student," she said.

Penn State research engineer Jeff Banks said he was "not very politically active" but added, "political freedom brings responsibility".

"I think it's my responsibility that if I don't agree with something, I make it known," he said.