Hundreds of protesters blocked three bridges and one tunnel in New York City on Monday, January 8, during peak morning commute hours. The demonstrators were protesting the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza, and highlighted five major demands in the struggle for Palestine: the release of all Palestinian political prisoners, the end of the occupation in the West Bank, the lifting of the siege on Gaza, the end of US aid to Israel, and a permanent ceasefire. Traffic going into Manhattan was blocked on four major commuter arteries: the Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Williamsburg bridges, as well as the Holland Tunnel.
The actions were organized by a wide coalition of organizations, including Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), Al-Awda: The Palestine Right to Return Coalition, Samidoun: Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), Critical Resistance, and Writers Against the War on Gaza (WAWOG).
The New York Police Department made over 400 arrests related to the traffic blockages. Some demonstrators used chains, PVC pipes, and concrete to delay arrest, forcing police to use electric saws to separate the demonstrators. At least two protesters at the Williamsburg Bridge were creative enough to link themselves together using PVC pipes, which were poured over with concrete and cemented to a tire. Police were forced to use a jackhammer to separate these two demonstrators.
Police also brutalized many protesters during the arrests. As they were being arrested, protesters chanted “NYPD, KKK, IDF, you’re all the same,” referencing the history of racism in policing as well as the close ties of US police departments to Israel.
NOW: An officer tells journalists “get out of my street!” and people yell back “these are our streets!” pic.twitter.com/9ejl3qJC3m
— katie smith (@probablyreadit) January 8, 2024
“We jam the arteries of the city and we reclaim the bridges and tunnels—which are funded by our taxes and fares—in solidarity with Palestine and all who are immiserated by the forces of capitalism and imperialism,” wrote the coalition of organizers in a statement. “By blocking the city’s exits, the protesters created—briefly, imperfectly—a physical analogue for the situation in Gaza, where there is no getting out. By stopping freedom of movement for drivers, the protesters drew parallels to the meaningless and cruel evacuation orders that the Zionist regime, in the midst of its relentless aerial, naval, and ground assault of Gaza, leaving people with no choice but to wait until their homes and shelters are bombed or to leave their city on foot.”
The statement touched on the historic significance of the coordinated action. “This city is ours,” proclaimed the members of ACT UP when, in the spring of 1995, they became the first (and until today, only) group of activists to shut down two bridges and two tunnels at once. Today’s protesters echoed the claim: New York City belongs to New Yorkers. Palestine belongs to Palestinians.”
At the same time, a crowd of hundreds gathered in lower Manhattan to rally outside the New York Stock Exchange. Organizers at this rally paid homage to the bridge blockades.
HAPPENING NOW: Pro-Palestine protesters block entrance to the New York Stock Exchange. pic.twitter.com/Ybs04iGhaQ
— BreakThrough News (@BTnewsroom) January 8, 2024
Meanwhile, several protesters interrupted President Biden as he was giving a speech at Mother Emanuel Church in Charleston, South Carolina. Biden was holding an event in homage to the 2015 killing of nine Black churchgoers at Mother Emanuel by a racist shooter. An audience member interrupted Biden’s speech, shouting, “If you really care about the lives lost here, you should honor the lives lost and call for a ceasefire in Palestine.” Multiple protesters then joined in, shouting “ceasefire now!”
BREAKING: Activists in South Carolina just took over Biden's speech to call for a ceasefire.
"20,000 dead Palestinians; their blood is on your hands."
Biden was shaken. He's starting to understand the reality: his war on Gaza is horrifically unpopular, and people are fed up. pic.twitter.com/qSSpRETAep
— IfNotNow🔥✡️ (@IfNotNowOrg) January 8, 2024
This past weekend, multiple actions took place, including a march of over a thousand people through freezing rain in Midtown Manhattan, which culminated at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Protesters disrupted a performance of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, citing Lincoln Center’s ties to the Zionist project.
