Anti-ICE demonstrators blocked Brooklyn Bridge traffic in Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s New York City on Wednesday, two days after a separate act of vandalism targeted names engraved at the 9/11 Memorial. Police took 14 people into custody following the bridge demonstration. The memorial case involved a man accused of spraying red paint across panels bearing victims’ names. Authorities arrested the suspect in that incident as well.
The October 28th demonstration followed an ICE shooting in Manhattan’s Marble Hill neighborhood earlier in the month. Participants demanded that federal immigration agents leave New York City and gathered at the Manhattan side of the crossing. Police responded shortly after 12:30 p.m. to a group of approximately 30 people obstructing vehicle and pedestrian traffic.
Demonstrators formed a seated line across the roadway, clapping and chanting as vehicles backed up behind them. Large yellow banners displayed their opposition to the shooting, while drumming accompanied demands directed at city police leadership. The crowd’s chants included a call to fire NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch. Drivers trying to make their way across the bridge were left waiting behind the demonstration.
As the New York Post reported, one stranded driver shouted, “We have to go to work.” Demonstrators chanted, “NYPD, KKK, ICE, they’re all the same!” Footage showed officers carrying at least one participant toward a police vehicle. PIX11 reported that banners included the demand “Stop Shooting Us,” while Citizen footage showed vehicles backed up for blocks.
News 12 reported that police responded around 12:34 p.m. and took demonstrators into custody without any further incident. Authorities reopened all traffic lanes shortly before 1:30 p.m., according to ABC7’s report. Fox News reported that no injuries were reported at the time and that it had contacted the mayor’s office for comment.
The separate memorial incident occurred Monday, October 26th, when a man allegedly painted the address of an anti-gun website across victims’ names. The Washington Examiner reported that the vandalism drew wider attention on social media Wednesday. The suspect, identified in the New York Post’s court reporting as Jonathan Andrew Tijerina, 31, faced charges of criminal mischief, making graffiti and possession of graffiti instruments. The markings appeared on panels at the North Pool, which occupies the footprint of the destroyed North Tower.
Watch the footage of the bridge demonstration here:
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The New York Post reported that prosecutors said a security officer caught Tijerina carrying two cans of matching paint. Cleaning the damage cost $560.64, according to the criminal complaint. He received supervised release at his Tuesday arraignment, with another court appearance scheduled for January 13th. His organization sought universal background checks and a national gun registry, directing its demands at President Donald Trump and Mamdani.
The memorial’s official description explains that its pools commemorate 2,977 people killed on September 11th, 2001, and six killed in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Names surround the twin reflecting pools at the former towers’ locations. Staff removed the paint following Monday’s incident. City Council Speaker Julie Menin condemned the defacement, saying, “Any defacement of the memorial, no matter the reason or cause, is wholly unacceptable.”
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video.