WATCH: Pittsburgh Jews Arrested Protesting Trump
Jewish activists were arrested in Pittsburgh on Wednesday while protesting President Trump’s attendance at a fracking industry conference.
Members of the progressive advocacy group Bend the Arc: Jewish Action were among the 14 people arrested in front of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, the group said in a statement.
NOW IN PITTSBURGH: Jewish leaders begin their march to the site of President Trump’s planned speech later today. #TrumpOutOfPGH #OurSolidarityWill pic.twitter.com/9H59ifvT0M
— Bend the Arc: Jewish Action (@jewishaction) October 23, 2019
Signs at the protest included “Our solidarity will defeat White Nationalists.” Marchers chanted “Rise up” and “You are not welcome here,” CBS Pittsburgh reported.
Trump’s attendance in Pittsburgh, where he is scheduled to give a speech in the afternoon about the oil and gas industry, comes almost a year to the day after the Tree of Life synagogue shooting, in which eleven Jews praying in a Pittsburgh synagogue were killed.
Bend the Arc and some other Jewish groups cast blame on Trump for xenophobic rhetoric that they say incited the alleged gunman. The group organized a protest during Trump’s visit to the synagogue in the aftermath of the attack, which drew more than 2,000 attendees.
Aiden Pink is the deputy news editor of the Forward. Contact him at pink@forward.com or follow him on Twitter @aidenpink
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