Hundreds of anti-cop Antifa demonstrators caused havoc in New York City on Friday evening.
The protest, which is being referred to by Antifa as a “f-ck the police” demonstration or “J31,” for the date, are not only protesting police, but also subway fares.
A giant gathering at Grand Central right now demanding free transit in NYC, and cops out of our subways.
Police just arrested one man for unknown reasons and the crowd surged forward, chanting:
“THE WHOLE WORLD IS WATCHING!” pic.twitter.com/H13UYHUdcH
— Read Abolish Rent (@JPHilllllll) January 31, 2020
More actions today 👇🏽 pic.twitter.com/6AW6uNvXqC
— DecolonizeThisPlace (@decolonize_this) January 31, 2020
“The mood for J31 is simple: f-ck your $2.75. No cops in the MTA. Free transit. No harassment, period, and full accessibility,” a masked thug in a promo video for the protest said. “We hope that you come through and move with us on J31. F-ck the police.”
WHOSE STREETS @telemundonews @univision @remezcla @wearemitu @theroot @theatlantic @guardian @latimes @theintercept @LatinoUSA @buzzfeed @propublica @artnet @artnews @culturestrike @artforum @hyperallergic pic.twitter.com/rTWXFgLQ5Z
— DecolonizeThisPlace (@decolonize_this) February 1, 2020
The protesters, many of them masked, were hopping turnstiles and vandalizing public transit platforms, store fronts, and anything else they could get their hands on.
Some of the demonstrators even rigged subway station doors open with bike locks and violin strings to allow people to access the subway platforms without paying.
Someone used a bike lock on an exit door to prevent it from closing. Respect to comrade u-lock for supporting today’s fare strike as part of J31. Cops out of the subways and free public transportation! Follow @decolonize_this for updates today, and be at Grand Central at 5pm. pic.twitter.com/qQ1Wli5MPO
— Andy Ratto (@andyratto) January 31, 2020
violin string for this one @decolonize_this #ftp3 #J31 pic.twitter.com/2B0HUYZizz
— shrimp fried santino rice (@welostnathan) January 31, 2020
Now || We are receiving reports “Chained open + superglue in the swipes” on #J31 #FTP3 pic.twitter.com/qneyxY5XFJ
— DecolonizeThisPlace (@decolonize_this) January 31, 2020
There was a massive police presence and multiple arrests have been made at several different locations throughout the city.
Arrests have already begun at #GrandCentral after AntiFa and #J31/#FTP3 protesters clash with NYPD officers.pic.twitter.com/sosVk0QA1h
— Marky Hutt 𝕏 (@MarkyARCHIVE) January 31, 2020
pigs using excessive force on protestors #decolonizethisplace #ALLCOPSOUTOFMTA #FULLACCESSIBILITY #NOHARRASSMENT #FREETRANSIT #thewholeworldiswatching #wekeepussafe #swipeitforward #copsoutoftheMTA #FTP3 #J31 #fuckthepigs #abolitionnow pic.twitter.com/C9Hdu5TRqQ
— DecolonizeThisPlace (@decolonize_this) January 31, 2020
The organizers of the protest have not been banned by Twitter, despite calling for vandalism and supporters to commit crimes.
WE’RE MOVING OUT – BEAUTIFY YOUR NEAREST TRAIN CAR + PIG MOBILE
@thisisamerica @politico @thenation @motherjones @telemundonews @univision @remezcla @wearemitu @theroot @theatlantic @guardian @latimes @theintercept @LatinoUSA @buzzfeed @propublica @artnet @artnews pic.twitter.com/zRWBLOYmXX
— DecolonizeThisPlace (@decolonize_this) January 31, 2020
In a warning about the protest on Thursday, the PBA wrote “New Yorkers should pay close attention: this is true endgame of the anti-police movement, an end of all policing & destruction of public order. Our members have spent their careers — and in some cases given their lives — to bring public safety back to NYC. We can’t go backwards.”
New Yorkers should pay close attention: this is true endgame of the anti-police movement, an end of all policing & destruction of public order. Our members have spent their careers — and in some cases given their lives — to bring public safety back to NYC. We can't go backwards pic.twitter.com/X72vVioCVi
— NYC PBA (@NYCPBA) January 30, 2020
