4:48 PM: On the Delridge Way pedestrian overpass at SW Oregon, Hate-Free Delridge is keeping its promise of “standing for peace.” The photo above shows the signs and their holders facing southbound traffic; several are facing the northbound lanes too, with signs including “Words Not Warheads” and “Peace and Justice on Earth.” Their plan, as first announced Sunday – with the explanation “We need to be heard. We need to speak out” – is to be here until about 6 pm, and you’re welcome to join them. Lots of honking from passing drivers so far.
(added) Susan Lebow of HFD explains what it’s about:
5:08 PM: More people continue arriving to join the demonstration, all ages including a family with two kids who just walked up.
Added above, a photo of the side facing northbound traffic (some of the signs, political and festival, were hanging on this side long before the event).
5:36 PM: The signs span many sentiments – now from left to right on the NB-facing side, No H8, Peace and Love, Enough!, Black Lives Matter, Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Respect Indigenous Rights, (“no” symbol) Naz, No War No Hate, Words Not Warheads, Hate-Free Zone, “Sure He’s An Ignorant Bigot, But He’s Our Ignorant Bigot, Support Bigot Trump,” No War, Build Unity, Peace and Justice on Earth, and a few with lettering just out of our reading range. The only sound of dissent we’ve heard, hanging out here by the overpass for 45 minutes – someone in a dugout at Delridge Playfield behind us yelled “Trump all the way!” likely out of earshot for those up on the overpass.
6:01 PM: This was scheduled to end about now, but demonstrators are still up on the overpass, and new signs have continued to appear. One that we just noticed says, “We Love You, Heather,” in remembrance of Heather Heyer, the woman killed by the driver who plowed into the counter-demonstrators at the white-supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend.
6:07 PM: It’s now breaking up. If you’re wondering “what’s next?” we’ve just been told that Hate-Free Delridge and other groups will join West Seattle Neighbors for Peace and Justice in The Junction on Sunday, noon-1 pm, and you’re invited to that gathering too – bring a sign if you want to.
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