Climate change activists snarled the Monday morning commute on the FDR Drive and West Side Highway, sending a message that the drivers they blocked could not ignore.
Extinction Rebellion organized the action, which occurred at about 8:45 a.m. on Oct. 25 along both major arteries on the east and west sides of the island, along with advocacy groups Sunrise NYC, Extinction Rebellion NYC, Jews for Economic and Racial Justice, and Fridays for Future NYC. The organizations reported that at least 33 of their members were arrested in the two-hour protest, though the NYPD did not provide an official number.
“We are interrupting traffic this morning not to annoy you, but to force the public to confront the true dangers of unchecked climate change,” Extinction Rebellion tweeted in a post directed at the drivers they impacted Monday morning. “If we do not act today, if @potus does not act today, NYC will be underwater by 2100. It’s a matter of life and death.”
