A new protest group spun off of “Black Lives Matter” took over the Bay Bridge and completely shut off a busy corridor into San Francisco for nearly an hour on Martin Luther King, Jr. day.
The group calling itself “Black.Seed” or possible “Black Seed” if the period between the words is a typo, is a self-professed “Black, queer liberation collective.”
Initially, it was unclear if they want liberation for African Americans and homosexuals or just African American homosexuals.
The group finally explained through a press release:
For the second year in a row, the Anti-Police Terror Project (APTP) put out a call for 96 Hours of Direct Action to reclaim Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s radical legacy and take a stand against anti-Black racism and terrorism. In a courageous display of solidarity and the spirit of MLK, Black.Seed, a Black, queer liberation collective, has shut down the Bay Bridge as a show of resistance to a system that continues to oppress Black, Queer, Brown, Indigenous and other marginalized people throughout the Bay Area.
The group demanded that the city invest in affordable housing, the resignation of Oakland’s mayor, the firing of San Francisco’s and Oakland’s police chiefs and several officers. They also called for the divestment of city funds used for policing.
The protesters also unveiled a sign that stretched the width of the bridge that read “Black Health Matters.”
The protesters may have been unaware that flu shots are free at many local pharmacies.
The media initially reported that “more than 1,000 protesters” blocked the bridge but from the looks of YouTube videos it was maybe a few dozen protesters.
Police in riot gear and blue hospital gloves responded to quickly arrest the protesters. Twenty-five were arrested although no skulls were reported cracked.
