December 14, 2023
John Kopp/PhillyVoice
A group of protesters from the group Jewish Voice for Peace blocked the westbound lanes of the Schuylkill Expressway and the Spring Garden Street bridge (pictured above) on Thursday, Dec. 14. They were demanding a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
Protesters calling for a ceasefire in Gaza blocked the westbound lanes of I-76 just beyond Center City and the Spring Garden Street bridge near the Philadelphia Museum of Art on Thursday afternoon, just before the start of rush hour. Some protesters were arrested.
The protest was organized by members of Jewish Voice for Peace and Rabbis for Ceasefire. Along with blocking the roadways, they hung banners from the Spring Garden bridge and carried signs that read "Let Gaza Live" and "Ceasefire Now."
MORE: Bucks County synagogue evacuates children from preschool after bomb threat
Interim Police Commissioner John Stanford told 6ABC that 32 people were arrested and will be cited for being on the highway. The Schuylkill Expressway has reopened, but the Spring Garden Street Bridge remains closed.
A group of protesters, for a time, stopped traffic on the westbound lanes of I-76 between the Vine Street Expressway interchange and Spring Garden Street. Police cleard the demonstrators from the highway but Spring Garden Street between the art museum and West Philly remained closed around 5:30.
Update: looks like police detained several people who made their way onto the highway. Meanwhile, the number of protestors have swelled on the Spring Garden Bridge above the Schuylkill https://t.co/pZlYKEZUkm pic.twitter.com/LBwE7ZJE1T
— Christie Ileto (@Christie_Ileto) December 14, 2023
Protesters then moved off of the bridge and traveled to the Philadelphia Museum of Art steps, according to a post around 5:40 p.m. by NBC10's Miguel Martinez-Valle on X (formerly Twitter).
Protestors moved off spring garden bridge to art museum steps@NBCPhiladelphia @Telemundo62 pic.twitter.com/v0eU0ni3vh
— Miguel Martinez-Valle (@MiguelMValle) December 14, 2023
The protest coincides with the eighth and final night of Hanukkah and happened concurrently with demonstrations in seven other cities, Jewish Voice for Peace said in a Facebook post.
"Jews and allies in the struggle for Palestinian freedom shut down rush hour traffic in Philadelphia," the organization wrote. "On the last day of Hanukkah, Jewish people are rising up in unprecedented numbers and moral clarity to say: CEASEFIRE NOW, Palestinians should be free. We will make business as usual impossible until the US stops funding and fueling a genocide."
HAPPENING NOW: Jews and allies in the struggle for Palestinian freedom shut down Philly traffic. Jewish people are rising up to say: CEASEFIRE NOW, Palestinians should be free. Philly is joining JVP protests across the country: On the 8th night of Hanukkah, 8 cities, 8 bridges. pic.twitter.com/cCfMWIIHjE
— JVP Philly (@JVPPhilly) December 14, 2023
The demonstrators are calling on President Joe Biden and local representatives Senator Bob Casey, Senator John Fetterman and Representative Dwight Evans to sign a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire, according to the post.
Another demonstration is scheduled to gather on Saturday at 2 p.m. on the south side of City Hall, according to an Instagram post by the Philly Palestine Coalition.
6ABC livestreamed Thursday's protest on YouTube for a time. The stream has ended but the video can be viewed below:
This is a developing story. Updates will follow.
Follow Franki & PhillyVoice on Twitter: @wordsbyfranki
| @thePhillyVoice
Like us on Facebook: PhillyVoice
Have a news tip? Let us know.
