Anti-Israel protesters on Monday morning took to the streets of lower Manhattan in New York City, where they blocked access to drivers on four bridges, leading to hundreds of arrests and a miserable commute for thousands.
Hundreds of demonstrators — locking themselves together using zip ties and chanting slogans including “NYPD, KKK, IDF: They’re all the same!” — blocked traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, Williamsburg Bridge, and Holland Tunnel for over two hours.
The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said 325 people were arrested, with many facing misdemeanor charges.
Protest organizers, which included the Palestinian Youth Movement and Jewish Voice for Peace, said in a statement that “the protesters created — briefly, imperfectly — a physical analogue for the situation in Gaza, where there is no getting out.”
Videos posted on social media show scenes of complete traffic gridlock across the city, along
with furious commuters who confronted protesters.
A construction worker is seen in videos posted on social media rolling down his windows asking the protesters to allow him to get to work. “There are people on the street,” a protester says. “Why?” the man asks. “Because we’re protesting the genocide in Gaza. We’re sorry for doing this,” the protester replies. “Get off the f—king road,” the driver then says in response.
Another man was filmed confronting protesters in a shoving match. “You’re disrupting traffic, idiots!” he says. “You can’t do that, that’s against the law!” As protesters continued to block his vehicle, the man explained he was trying to pick his daughter up. Other motorists can be heard saying “run them over!”
Videos also show a commuter yelling at protesters from his car window: “They ruined my day … This is New York, not Palestine, not Gaza!”
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