Some of you know that the name “went2thebridge” derives from weekly bannering on a bridge in Maine during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. It’s the bridge where I met my husband and we stood there with many friends over the years. Why that location? Lots of traffic passing by.
This week I took a vacation from fasting (sadly, not a choice for the children of Gaza) to visit activist friends we know from Maine who go to the bridge each week in Asheville, North Carolina. Their bridge over I-240 has around 3,200 vehicles passing by at evening rush hour and they employ an interesting banner-making method for highly visible messaging.
Yesterday’s messages: Israel-US is exterminating Palestinians and Can’t say we didn’t know.
Using a method developed by backbonecampaign.org, the banners are made by affixing bright orange Typar letters to a net. In Asheville they then erect the banners using the type of extension poles that painters use to reach high places.
My husband and I got a tutorial from our host on how to create and use these banners and we plan on ordering the starter kit which has most of the supplies to get started.
Yesterday we enjoyed meeting people new to us who are unafraid to stand with Palestine, fourteen in all of varying ages including a couple of kids and their parents. We also enjoyed the plentiful honks, thumbs up gestures, peace signs, and keffiyeh displays from cars passing by. The woman I stood beside said that positive responses are increasing steadily and I told her that we’ve been finding that in Maine, too. Public opinion is steadily turning against Zionists over their killing fields in Gaza.
One of the coolest aspects of these banners is the shadows they cast. Yesterday I captured (and flipped) this one on the the interstate:
Sometimes the Asheville group stands on the opposite sidewalk of their overpass and then the shadows fall onto the surface street that goes over the bridge.
You can follow their work on twitter at @RejectRaytheon and @NoWarIndustry or on Insta at @rejectraytheonavl.
What kind of vacation is this you may ask? It’s the kind activists take. My husband and I agree that our social life basically consists of activism. Because there’s only so much time in the day, and we’ve met the nicest people while doing this kind of work.
I’ll resume my fast when we return to Maine — because the suffering of Gazans at the hands of the U.S.-Israel is always on my mind.
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