Nearly 50 protesters had been arrested Thursday morning after Boston Police say they refused to maneuver out of a significant Boston thoroughfare, inflicting site visitors gridlock.
Hundreds gathered at Dewey Square in downtown Boston for a protest calling for a ceasefire within the Israel-Hamas struggle and peace for Palestinians in an occasion deliberate by the group IfNotNow Boston.
Boston Police had been there to observe the occasion and arrived at round 8 a.m., in accordance with a police report obtained by the Herald. Upon arrival, police say, they spoke with a few of the organizers and stated the group was welcome to protest within the sq. and on the sidewalk, however police stated they need to “refrain from blocking any intersections,” particularly because the hour was the height of the morning rush hour.
The organizers reportedly instructed police they’d share the message however weren’t chargeable for what people selected to do.
At round 8:18 a.m., a big contingent of the group, which police of their report estimated at round 200, started strolling into the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Summer Street. It’s a significant intersection downtown that carries not solely workaday site visitors but additionally MBTA buses and is a route utilized by ambulances to each Tufts Medical Center and Massachusetts General Hospital.
A Boston Police captain on the scene minutes later declared an illegal meeting and introduced that if folks didn’t disperse from the roadway they’d be arrested, in accordance with the report.
A protestor with a megaphone responded: “Quick announcement. I want everyone to know that the Boston Police has given us a warning. Five minutes before they make arrests. I want everyone to know that so you can make a decision about what feels right to you. If you don’t want to risk getting arrested please move to the sidewalk in the next five minutes. Otherwise we are going to continue standing here until there is a ceasefire and until Palestine is free.”
While police word that many protesters did comply and transfer from the intersection, dozens didn’t, resulting in the arrest of 47 of them.
In a video shared by IfNotNow Boston, a person in handcuffs continues his protest by saying in a sing-song voice, “Ceasefire. Our children are dying, it can’t get more dire. Ceasefire.”
The group tweeted following the arrests that “Boston Police have arrested over 50 protestors for putting their bodies on the line to cry out for peace. But we will not be silenced! The protest continues.”
Those arrested had been charged with illegal meeting and disturbing the peace.
According to the police report, the next folks had been arrested, with the Herald alphabetizing the listing and including ages:
Samantha Abinder, 27, of Cambridge;
Sharafi Bahar, 45, of Dorchester;
Sarah Binney, 26, of Cambridge;
Joshua Blaine, 40, of Providence, R.I.;
Tessa Davidson Brown, 23, of Boston;
Nancy Chamberlin, 63, of Brookline;
Miriam Cohen, 25, of Cambridge;
Linda Cohen, 62, of Revere;
Lauren Colodny, 24, of Somerville;
Allison Comet, 36, of Jamaica Plain;
Sophia Crogan, 28, of Somerville;
Shayna Curran, 35, of Watertown;
Evan Drukker-Schardl, 25, of Somerville;
Mayanka Dutta, 27, of Jamaica Plain;
Elana Eisenmarkowitz, 39, of Malden;
Marigo Farr, 36, of Boston;
Leah Folpem 24, of Allston;
Nancy Gold, 71, of Cambridge;
Lily Grob, 23, of Cambridge;
Talya Guenzburger, 26, of Somerville;
Rebecca Heisler, 30, of Cambridge;
Jacob Hershman, 25, of Cambridge;
Anisa Kaatana, 21, of Somerville;
David Kaplinsky, 33, of Cambridge;
Patrick Keaney, 54, of Boston;
Dalya Lessem, 18, of Waltham;
Hannah Limov, 33, of Jamaica Plain;
Lian Lucansky, 27, of Cambridge;
Katia Mathews, 25, of Cambridge;
Guadalupe Najar, 22, of Roxbury;
Madeline O’Reilly, 33, of Boston;
Gregory Reiser, 48, of Boston;
Sarah Revesz, 29, of Marlboro;
Ryan Roche, 37, of Dorchester;
Raviv Rose, 23, of Medford;
Leah Rosenbloom, 30, of Ardmore, Pa.;
Naomi Roswell, 27, of Somerville;
Jack Rubien, 25, of Boston;
Tatum Schutt, 22, of Somerville;
Alexander Siber, 29, of Wellesley;
Alec Southwell, 25, of Cambridge;
Emy Takinami, 29, of Brookline;
Ashley Tarbet, 36, of East Boston;
Mariele Ventrice, 34, of Jamaica Plain;
Sophia Vostrejs, 18, of Waltham;
Molly Zegans, 40, of Nantucket;
and a Lexington juvenile launched to household.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”