Philadelphia Police Crack Down on Anti-ICE Marches Twice in One Week

  • June 18, 2025 1:16 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA — The increasing tempo of pro-immigrant, anti-ICE protests hit Philadelphia last week, and the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) has decided to crack down.

On Tuesday, June 10, and Saturday, June 14, autonomous protests were called outside of the Federal Detention Center (FDC), where up to 125 immigrant detainees can be held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The Tuesday protest included 80-100 protesters, while the Saturday demonstration brought an estimated 300. Both marches were met with intense police response which resulted in injuries and arrests.

Unlike other cities, where police shot tear gas and rubber bullets into crowds, the Philadelphia Police Department dispersed marches with tools on hand: battering protesters with batons, corralling the crowd with bicycles and nearly running activists and journalists over with motorized dirt bikes.

In October 2020, following protests against the killings of George Floyd and Walter Wallace Jr., the Philadelphia City Council passed a ban on the use of tear gas and rubber bullets on protesters. Additionally, a 2023 lawsuit resulted in a $9 million settlement awarded to activists, organizers and West Philly residents who were harmed by police use of tear gas.

This report covers how police repressed the June 10 and 14 demonstrations that roamed the northeast side of Center City — video from June 14 below.

June 10 Autonomous Demonstration: Philadelphia Police Arrest 15 Anti-ICE Protesters, Strike with Batons

Nationwide protests had taken off in solidarity against the recent militarized crackdowns and immigration sweeps in Los Angeles, as well as in objection to local ICE detentions. On the morning of June 10, ICE arrested at least one individual in South Philadelphia. Local activists also witnessed three detained in Kensington earlier that week.

In response to these detentions, an autonomous protest was called that morning to mobilize that afternoon. At 4 p.m., approximately 80-100 people congregated near the FDC at 7th and Arch Street and began chanting. A megaphone was passed among the crowd, and participants gave speeches about the Trump administration’s “fascist” immigration policies, as well as the interrelated struggle between domestic colonialism and the genocide in Gaza. (Local protesters also have been rallying weekly against one of Israel’s arms suppliers, Day & Zimmermann, on Spring Garden Street.)

Philadelphia police officers film protesters outside of the Federal Detention Center. Officers with cameras followed the entire march.

A march then began, trekking past the ICE field office and then down Market Street, taking the prominent throughway. At the end of the second lap, police began pressuring the protest and at 6:44 p.m., issued a order to disperse. The Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) then flanked the crowd in an attempted kettle, struck several people with batons and arrested 15.

Immigrants rights protesters march in Philadelphia on June 10, 2025.

Activists marched around the block to the ICE field office, looped back to the FDC, and then took another lap onto Market Street.

Several protesters used bikes to define the march’s perimeter, acting in sync during the protest. On the second return to FDC Philadelphia, tensions escalated between Philly PD bike patrol and the bike brigade activists. They faced off closely and argued for some time.

One protester from the bike brigade explained:

“From my perspective, the bikers present maintained control and effectively managed the situation, preventing a rush. This strategic positioning, I believe, was not favored by the police, leading to their attempt to accelerate matters. I also heard from someone that there was communication over the scanner indicating an intent to arrest the bikers, and myself. Our actions were entirely within legal bounds; we were simply employing strategic measures to maintain a safe distance and manage the situation effectively.”

Bike patrol officers stand close to marchers on June 10, 2025.

After the protest returned to the FDC, two bike cops were isolated by the crowd in front of the detention center. While activists and police exchanged verbal insults, at least one person in the crowd advised others to make sure that police could retreat from the cornered situation.

Protesters congregate outside the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia on June 10, 2025.

By this time, tensions were high. While there was no evidence of spray painted graffiti or significant property damage on the facility, a message was written onto one of the windows appearing to say “FUCK ICE.”

The Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia on June 10, 2025, with “FUCK ICE” written on a window.

At approximately 6:44 p.m., the police issued an initial dispersal order, declaring the march “unlawful.”

The PPD then pressured protesters to keep moving, issuing a third dispersal order by 6:51 p.m. However, these declarations were not easily audible — our contributor could not hear them on site. An increased presence of officers, prepared with batons and riot gear, began following the protesters from behind.

Police officers with bicycles follow the march in Philadelphia on June 10, 2025, after it was declared an “unlawful assembly.”
Philadelphia Police officers, including some in riot gear, tail the anti-ICE march behind the bike cops on June 10, 2025.

At around 7 p.m., police announced via their radios that they were planning arrests.

When the march reached Market St., police began to clash with protesters.

A police captain gives commands to protesters while flanked by officers on June 10, 2025.
Officers use batons to shove the crowd, with the Philadelphia Police captain giving commands, on June 10, 2025.

“They held the line when we got to Market Street. And they scared people. And, what do scared people do? They run. But then [the cops] started beating people,” one protester recounts. “There was no way out, so you had to run through or cower and hope they didn’t hurt you. If you ran, they tried to beat you.”

A Philadelphia Police officer chases a protester while brandishing his baton on June 10, 2025.
Philadelphia Police officers clash with, strike and arrest protesters on Market Street on June 10, 2025.
A Philadelphia Police officer uses baton to slam a pro-immigrant activist against a police car on June 10, 2025.
Philadelphia Police officers hold a protester on the ground on June 10, 2025, using batons to push into the protester’s neck.
Philadelphia Police surround a photographer and command him to move on June 10, 2025.
Philadelphia Police officers congregate after arresting protesters on June 10, 2025. Several detainees were lined up along the wall.

Fifteen people were arrested. Fourteen were hit with disorderly conduct, which is a ticketed offense called a CVN in Philadelphia. (There were press reports of another charge of aggravated assault but this has not been confirmed as of press time.)

In at least one documented instance, a Philadelphia officer kneeled on a protester’s neck. Two arrested protesters and two police officers received medical attention after.

As of 10 p.m. on June 11, additional barricades were placed around the FDC and its large window facade was boarded up.

June 14 Autonomous Demonstration: Protesters Flee Attacking Bike Cops via Holiday Inn Express

Liberal groups returned to Philly to host the “No Kings” national flagship rally on June 14 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art; messages against ICE policy were a major theme. Facing light rain at 2 p.m., much of the 80,000 person crowd began drifting back towards City Hall from the art museum.

Shortly after, an autonomous demonstration against ICE gathered again near the FDC around 6 p.m. with a message in solidarity with the revolt by ICE detainees in Delaney Hall detention facility in Newark, which is operated by the GEO Group. Last Friday, the Department of Homeland Security claimed four people escaped by knocking over an outer wall after an uprising among ICE detainees Thursday evening was spurred by a lack of food.

Philadelphia Police Department officers lined up outside the Federal Detention Center on June 14, 2025, some with riot gear.
Two masked federal police officers near the William Green Federal Building in Philadelphia on June 14, 2025.

Police scanners noted that the Philly PD shadowed some roaming protest groups earlier in the afternoon, as some “No Kings” protest participants joined into the autonomous gathering. Before the 6 p.m. protest began, dozens of cops stationed in groups around the FDC. Dirt bike police staged nearby on Broad Street, and sanitation trucks blocked street traffic around the FDC.

“Ice An Agent” message stitched on a cloth banner.

Shortly after the march began, over 100 Philly Police quickly corralled the protest to stop it from heading down 7th Street towards the highway. The group instead marched into Center City towards the Fashion District as bike cops followed.

Philadelphia bike police navigate around a plastic jersey barrier on the sidewalk.

The anti-ICE march snaked around northeast Center City. At 12th and Walnut there was a scuffle, after protesters repurposed plastic jersey barriers to obstructed bike police following the march. Officers had to push these out of way. Then, officers began to grab march participants with masks and umbrellas. Unicorn Riot saw what appeared to be several successful de-arrests.

A Philadelphia Police officer yells at protesters as he’s held back by his superior on June 14, 2025.

At 13th and Walnut, at about 7 p.m., after the conflict over barricades, police attacked the crowd and kettled it at the intersection. Some protesters then ran through the Holiday Inn Express garage. Police with bicycles lined up to cut off garage access, splitting the crowd. PPD ordered people to leave while they had everyone surrounded, and eventually let some march away while issuing dispersal orders.

This time around, the police had added dirt bike-type motorcycles to their arsenal. Philly Police on motorbikes nearly ran over people’s feet repeatedly, repeatedly zooming across a block to come within an inch or so of striking our reporter as well as a small handful of protesters leaving the area.

Once again there were arrests and injuries — legal observers tell us there were approximately seven arrests. One person was released immediately, two the following evening. By Sunday evening, June 15th, everyone was known to be released by 6 p.m.

Future ICE Activity Expected in Philadelphia

Philadelphia may see more militarized ICE actions soon. Detentions of immigrants have continued regularly around Philadelphia and its suburbs.

“The World is Watching” written with sidewalk chalk on the street in front of the FDC.

A report by NBC News said that Special Response Team (SRT) tactical units are expected in the city, as well as in Chicago, Seattle, Northern Virginia and New York. These may be similar to the SRT deployments that spurred major protests in Los Angeles and Minneapolis last week.

Unicorn Riot leaked the SRT ICE Homeland Security Investigations “team handbook” back in 2019.

ICE Special Response Team (SRT) “MRAP” style vehicle. Source: YouTube
Sidewalk chalk notes “Philly ❤️s immigrants.”

NJ Nazis Plans Surprise Rally Next Weekend; Well, Suprise!

  • June 17, 2025 1:03 am

from Idavox

A picture from a year or so of the Atlantic Nationalist Club. L-R, William A. Galmot New York, Sean Lemley, Claudino G. Petruccelli, unknown, Charles Netter.

Sigh … Atlantic Nationalist Club it’s trying something stupid again. The fact that we know about it should tell you how much they are failing. 

A neo-Nazi organization in New Jersey that has been trying to make a name for themselves  is planning to rally on June 21, but have not yet decided where they will hold it — between Philadelphia, Pa., or Princeton, N.J.

Atlantic Nationalist Club (ANaC), a spinoff organization from a New Jersey chapter of White Lives Matter (WLM) founded by its former head Claudino G. Petruccelli, does not have many members and three of them have been incarcerated over the past two years: Nick Mucci who attempted to attack a One People’s Project benefit show, Andrew Takhistov who is accused of plotting to destroy energy facilities, and Steven Koshlyak who was arrested the same week as Takhistov but his charges have not been made public after almost a year. In November 2022, Koshlyak was one of three, along with Petruccelli, arrested in Somerville, N.J., when they attempted to post WLM stickers on street posts and signs around town. Petruccelli additionally received a weapons charge for possessing a can of pepper spray larger than the legal size in New Jersey. These incidents, and the feeling that the group is compromised by antifascists, have kept other neo-Nazis away from Petruccelli and his group.

The original announcement. “Katamine” is a screen name Claudino Petruccelli uses.

When the group protested outside the One People’s Project office in December, they were confronted at a local diner by OPP members who learned about their plans that night before. Two months later, they attempted to protest outside a bookstore in New Haven, Conn., but patrons were waiting for them when they arrived because their plans for that rally were also leaked.

Petruccelli has shown a pattern of reckless violent behavior recently including a fight, also in Connecticut, two weeks before the bookstore rally. That fight with members of the Nationalist Social Club and its leader Chris Hood led to people being stabbed. On March 30, there was an attempt to set up fellow neo-Nazi William Andrew Wessells to attack in a Princeton, N.J. shopping mall parking lot, but that fight did not materialize. Wessells currently, along with his partner Tara Streb, run the WLM chapter in New Jersey, Petruccelli’s old position.

March 22, 2025 – Sean Lemley of Lyndhurst, NJ, left sparring with William A. Galmot of New York.
March 22, 2025 – Claudino Petrucceli on left sparring with Charles Netter of Connecticut.

In April, Petruccelli and fellow ANaC member Sean Lemley, who works at a ShopRight supermarket in Lyndhurst, NJ that ran for the school board there last fall, returned to New Brunswick, N.J., to post flyers attacking Karmelo Anthony, who is currently facing murder charges after he stabbed Austin Metcalf in an altercation at a Texas high school that looks to be a case of self defense on the part of Anthony. Antifascists followed them while they walked the Rutgers University campus as they looked for a place to affix the flyers, which they eventually posted on the glass doors and windows of two university buildings and which were removed before anyone saw them. Petruccelli or Lemley knew they were being observed.

On May 17, Petruccelli said in a post on his Signal account, where he uses the name “Ketamine,” that he expected 30 participants. Regardless of the reputation the ANaC has with other groups, they hope to have them join them at their rally on the longest day of the year.

A clash during an anti-ICE protest in Center City led to 15 arrests, 2 injured police officers, and 2 hurt demonstrators

  • June 11, 2025 1:30 am

from Mainstream Media

Videos showed a large confrontation at the intersection of 11th and Market Streets around 7 p.m.

Philadelphia police clash with activists at 11th and Markets Streets during a protest over rumors of Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests within the city and in solidarity with protesters in Los Angeles.
Philadelphia police clash with activists at 11th and Markets Streets during a protest over rumors of Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests within the city and in solidarity with protesters in Los Angeles.

Two Philadelphia police officers suffered minor injuries and 15 protesters were arrested after a physical confrontation erupted during a march denouncing deportations Tuesday evening in Center City, police said.

Two protesters also reported minor injuries and received medical treatment, police said.

Video showed a confrontation at the intersection of 11th and Market Streets with police arresting at least one masked man, who was held down on the ground with the officer’s knee, while other officers used bicycles to push protesters away.

Another video showed at least three officers struggle to pull down another man they apparently were trying to arrest. One officer with a bullhorn struck the man several times in the legs with a baton and the man fell to the ground.

Sam Melamed
Philadelphia police clash with activists at 11th and Market Streets during a protest over rumors of Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests within the city and around the country.

“Several officers employed force while making arrests. Consistent with Philadelphia Police Department policy, every use of force has been documented and will undergo a review to ensure compliance with departmental guidelines,” the department said in a statement late Tuesday night.

“The Philadelphia Police Department supports the public’s right to lawful, peaceful protest. We remain committed to facilitating First Amendment activity while protecting public safety and maintaining order on city streets,” the department said.

Around 4 p.m., about 50 people gathered for an “emergency action” at the Federal Detention Center at Seventh and Arch Streets after rumors about multiple arrests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the city spread online. ICE did not immediately return requests for comment.

Immigrant rights group Juntos confirmed one ICE arrest in South Philadelphia at about 7 a.m. Tuesday, adding the group had connected the person to the Mexican Consulate for legal support.

The crowd drew honks and cheers from evening commuters, and after growing in size began marching.

Police said at some point there were 150 demonstrators.

The group marched to the offices of ICE at Eighth and Cherry Street, then returned to the Federal Detention Center, police said.

Then, according to police, there was a second march that began disrupting traffic and allegedly endangered public safety.

Police said they issued orders to disperse three times. The protesters allegedly ignored the orders and continued blocking traffic while confronting officers.

Around 7 p.m., police attempted to make arrests and the “crowd’s behavior escalated, becoming violent and extremely disorderly.”

Besides the 15 arrests, including one for alleged felony aggravated assault on an officer, police said one of their vehicles was vandalized with spray paint.

One immigration advocate, who declined to give his name, said those arrested were unclear on what they did wrong.

“Police pushed them for six or seven blocks,” he said. “They declared it an illegal assembly.”

President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown led to violent clashes in the Los Angeles area after large numbers of heavily geared officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement descended on several locations to detain people.

In response to the protests around Los Angeles, Trump sent the National Guard and Marines despite the objections of Democratic leaders in California.

Protester Marie Conti, 80, right, talks with another protester at Seventh and Arch Streets, in Philadelphia, June 10, 2025.
Protester Marie Conti, 80, right, talks with another protester at Seventh and Arch Streets, in Philadelphia, June 10, 2025.Jessica Griffin / Staff Photographer

“It was a peaceful protest and then they started throwing people to the ground,” said Dresden Diaz, of Center City. “The attacks were vicious.”

One woman, who declined to give her name citing fear of police reprisal, said she joined the protesters after work because she thinks the immigration enforcement in Los Angeles and the Trump administration’s subsequent use of the National Guard to quell peaceful protests is “disgusting.”

“Immigrants make up this country, our families are immigrants,” said another woman.

Around 8:30 p.m., a small group of protesters returned to the Federal Detention Center. No other incidents were reported.

Around Pennsylvania, immigration advocates and ICE reported increased enforcement sweeps.

More than 20 people in Norristown have been taken into custody by ICE since the start of the month.

Palestine Protests Target Philly-Based ‘Genocide Profiteer’ Day & Zimmermann

  • June 11, 2025 1:15 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA — “Before long the entire city will know what this company does!” These were some of the last words spoken Tuesday morning by a protester with a megaphone and a kaffiyeh scarf after a few dozen people had gathered for two hours outside a well-appointed office building in Center City Philadelphia. Their target was Day & Zimmermann, a “construction, engineering, staffing and ammunition manufacture” company that makes shells and machine gun rounds used by Israel to kill Palestinians.

Employees arriving for work at the weapons manufacturer’s headquarters on June 3 found themselves greeted with banners reading “Day & Zimmermann Out Of Philly! – No Genocide Profiteers In Our Neighborhood” and “Day and Zimmermann Profits From Genocide in Gaza.“

Day & Zimmermann was previously visited by protesters in March and April 2024 who oppose its lucrative role in arming the ongoing Israeli genocide in occupied Palestine.

A new protest campaign just launched by the Philly chapter of Students For Justice in Palestine (SJP) has vowed to bring shame and attention to Day & Zimmermann every Tuesday morning.

Tuesday morning’s visit to Day & Zimmermann’s offices highlighted the role of the “genocide profiteer” in the January 29, 2024 massacre in which Israeli soldiers killed 6-year-old Hind Rajab, six of her family members, and two paramedics. An exploded shell found at the scene of Rajab’s murder was traced via serial number to the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant, which is owned and operated by Day & Zimmermann. (More info on this below.)

A Philly SJP spokesperson told Unicorn Riot,

“We’re committed to getting Day & Zimmermann the fuck out of Philly… they’re one of the country and the world’s leading weapons manufacturers… We are hoping to mobilize people against the murderers of Hind Rajab and countless other Palestinians… and kick them the fuck out.”

Philadelphia Students for Justice in Palestine Coalition

Activists chanted and distributed leaflets educating passers-by and employees in nearby businesses about their neighbor’s role in facilitating genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza. Several people working near the Day & Zimmermann HQ expressed shock and concern, with one woman telling protesters “y’all are doing God’s work, for real,” and remarking that she was aware of issues around the University of Pennsylvania’s investments in Israel but not of such a direct connection to her daily routine.

Clusters of protesters gathered outside the two front entrances on 1500 Spring Garden St. as well as Day & Zimmermann’s back entrance and employee parking gate by the intersection of 15th & Hamilton, where several prepared statements were read outlining recent Israeli massacres of Palestinians as employees walked by to clock in to work.

No arriving employees arriving interacted with any demonstrators; a building security employee briefly explained that they would not be permitted to block any entrances. Approximately a dozen Philadelphia Police, occasionally speaking with building security staff who would walk up to their cruisers, were deployed in vehicles scattered around the immediate area; a couple plainclothes officers sporting Civil Affairs Unit armbands stood closer to the building entrances monitoring the protest.

CBS Philadelphia (KYW-TV), whose headquarters is in the same building at 1500 Spring Garden, did not send a reporter to cover the protest despite their proximity. A CBS employee who spoke to Unicorn Riot on their way into work insisted that management was aware of the demonstration.

Day & Zimmermann bills itself as “a leading provider of munitions” and reportedly has over 43,000 employees in the US. The company has not responded to a request for comment as of publication time.

According to a research summary by the American Friends Service Committee, shells fired by Israeli Merkava tanks at the site of Hind Rajab’s murder and a November 2023 attack on a U.N. school had serial numbers that trace back to Mason & Hanger, a subsidiary of Day & Zimmermann for the last 25 years:

Day & Zimmermann, based in Pennsylvania, is a private munitions manufacturer. It operates the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant (IAAP), which has been the source of many of the artillery munitions used by the Israeli military, including 155mm rounds, fired by Israel’s M109 howitzer guns, and 120mm M830A1 High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT) round, fired by Israel’s Merkava battle tanks.

Mason & Hanger has operated the IAAP since 1951. Between 1998 and 2007, the factory was operated by American Ordnance, a joint venture of Mason & Hanger and General Dynamics. Day & Zimmermann acquired Mason & Hanger in 1999, and in 2007 it acquired General Dyanmics’ stake in American Ordnance.

In November 2023, Israeli tanks fired M830A1 rounds while attacking a U.N. school in Gaza. The serial number on one of the rounds recovered from the scene of the attack suggests that it was manufactured at the IAAP by Mason & Hanger in December 1990.

On January 19, 2024, Israeli tanks fired M830A1 rounds in an attack that killed six-year-old Hind Rajab, her six family members, and the medics who attempted to rescue her, in the Gaza neighborhood of Tel al-Hawa. The serial number on an exploded round found inside the ambulance sent to rescue Rajab suggests that it was manufactured at the IAAP by Mason & Hanger in November 1996.

In December 2023, the U.S. government used emergency measures to approve the transfer of 14,000 M830A1 tank rounds to Israel without Congressional review. The transfer—from the existing inventory of the U.S. Army–was worth $106.5 million and funded by U.S. taxpayers’ money.

Day & Zimmermann’s factory in Texarkana, Texas, is the current supplier of M830A1 rounds for the U.S. Army. Between 2017 and 2021, the U.S. Army’s supplier of these munitions was a Northrop Grumman factory in Plymouth, Minn.

American Friends Service Committee research summary

“Go Back To Africa!” Judge’s Son Harasses Rally Participants in Pennsylvania With Racist Slur

  • April 23, 2025 1:36 am

from Idavox

John Francis McCarthy IV

It will never surprise us how much conservatives short circuit the minute they see Black people.

Over the weekend, the anti-Trump “Hands Off” rallies that have been held across the country over the past few months continued (the next big protest date is planned for May 1). Most were peaceful with few arrests, primarily from conflicts with neo-fascists like the Proud Boys who counter the protests. Participants of a small rally just outside Philadelphia, which happened a few days before the big weekend rallies, were also confronted by the racist son of a New Jersey judge who is also Trump volunteer with open criminal cases in Pennsylvania, Florida and Texas.

On April 15, Chester County Indivisible had posted that they were going on an overpass in Chesterbrook, Pennsylvania with banners in support of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last month, and who the Trump Administration is not returning to his home in Maryland. At least ten persons stood on the overpass spanning Rt. 206. Kadida Kenner of the New Pennsylvania Project, an organization that advocates for voting rights and works to expand the voter rolls in Pennsylvania, joined the protest after it was going on for a few hours. “I saw a pop-up pop up on my timeline, and I said, I’m going to go because I want to be out there with this group. I want to support this group that is doing this,” she said.

There were no incidents until John McCarthy approached just minutes after Kenner arrived. He claimed he was a reporter for “First Right Media,” and immediately the group felt he was a bit off. “When he came, he just looked completely out of place,” Kenner recalled. “I mean, he was dressed in a suit, he has his own personal phone out and he’s cosplaying as and saying out loud that he’s an independent journalist and made-up a publication of some kind.”

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Kenner advised the group to ignore McCarthy and not engage with him, which prompted him to become more irate, repeatedly suggesting that not wanting to speak to him is why they lost the last election. “He wasn’t getting the attention that he was looking for. He wasn’t getting the soundbites he was looking for,” she said, noting that this was when McCarthy focused his attention on her, the only Black woman in the group.  “He came towards me and said, ‘I want to get your sign. I want to get a picture of your sign.’ And as he came towards me to do that, I kept turning away from him because I didn’t want to be on his camera. I didn’t want my sign to be on his camera. And that is what was the final draw for him, the final straw for him, was me completely ignoring him.”

That last straw prompted him to fling even more invectives as he left the overpass, and as he walked away, he directed his last missive to Kenner; “Go back to Africa!”

As McCarthy was a bit away from Kenner and started a quicker walk to his car it wasn’t until someone replayed the video of the racist comment that Kenner first heard it. “I didn’t hear him say that to me and I’m glad I didn’t,” she said. “And I believe the ancestors protected me. (I) believe the ancestors protected me from hearing that!”

Kenner was not surprised by that response from McCarthy, as there seems to be a heightened hostility toward Blacks from the right, particularly when they are advocating for human rights. “Whenever black folks are out and about trying to defend democracy trying to protect the rights of everybody, we solicit such racist responses,” she said. “What’s interesting to me is I wasn’t treating him any differently than anybody else was but he left, he only pointed to me on his way out. He only pointed to me, only me, to go back to Africa. I was the only black person there. There a Latina woman there as well, but I was the only one that he had to have a comment for.”

John Francis McCarthy VI is the estranged son of a municipal judge in Princeton, NJ. Online records note that he trademarked “First Right Media” in September and the only other instance that could be found of that name being used is associated with McCarthy’s Twitter handle on an account where he mostly retweets other tweets. During the presidential campaign, he was interviewed by reporters while he was outside an appearance of then Vice-President candidate Tim Walz, where he expressed his support for Donald Trump. Also,  his criminal record dating back five years shows that he has violence associated with his political leanings.

He was arrested in January 2022 in Tallahassee, Florida on a battery charge stemming from when he allegedly accosted television reporter Madison Glaser in an effort to get on live television to satisfy a “bounty” put out by Infowars’ Alex Jones, according to the police report, where he produced a video calling for his followers to, “Get on get on national live, or international live TV, legally and lawfully, to a COVID wake-up slogan of your choice,” while promoting his website. McCarthy followed Glaser into a police headquarters lobby but eventually was arrested the following days later after Glaser filed a police report. The case is ongoing with an active warrant for McCarthy who acknowledged the warrant in emails to local news outlets last month that is a misdemeanor battery charge. He also admitted to having a Texas warrant for unlawful restraint, which he claims was the result of a “double parking” dispute outside a laundromat. Records show that the incident occurred on February, 17 2022 in Texas Bastrop, TX with charges filed on May 20, 2022.

The emails were in relation to one of McCarthy’s more recent arrests two months ago in which he was charged with impersonating a public servant and harassment for identifying himself as law enforcement multiple times to people in Quarryville, PA. According to news reports,  he approached two officers on patrol, identified himself as a “volunteer with the United States Attorney’s Office” and was investigating a drug case in the area and asked to assist him, saying that he worked with  Lancaster, Pennsylvania police as well. He only had a Texas driver’s license and Uber driver business card as identification, and did not have the necessary security clearance. Lancaster city police said they never worked with McCarthy. McCarthy became agitated and drove away, according to police.

A few days later, a local Turkey Hill convenience store employee told police McCarthy two weeks earlier he told her he was an “undercover drug buster,” and inquired about certain employees, calling the store multiple times on Feb. 16. He was told they were there not at the time and became angry when he was told they were off, saying he would be investigating all of them and he hoped the woman’s unborn baby would be stillborn. In the emails he sent to news outlets, McCarthy denied the charges and said he is a concerned Uber driver who has “legally and lawfully” volunteered information to law enforcement.

In March, McCarthy was arrested when it was learned that he had been at Morr Range in Lampeter, PA firing a weapon despite having the outstanding warrants as well as a restraining order against him in New Jersey. He was released on $50,000 bail but the charge was dropped. Records show that he is supposed to have a court appearance on Tuesday in Lancaster County Court on harassment charges stemming from the Quarryville arrest.

While the Hands Off rallies have been successful, there has been an equally successful effort by Black people to sit them out with the contention that it is ultimately not a fight Black and Brown people need to wage, at least not this way. Kenner will participate in the rallies as she is the CEO of an organization that fights for voting rights but her presence should not be taken by granted. “We’ve been saying for many, many years now what’s going to happen if we don’t get ourselves together, do the right things,” she said. “And we should be out here defending all of our rights and our freedoms and not just when it’s convenient or when it’s starting to affect certain people.”

Thousands at Philly ‘Hands Off’ March and Rally: ‘No Kings in America’

  • April 17, 2025 1:44 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA — After a brutal stock market correction and new anti-trade tariff policies, more than 120,000 layoffs of federal workers, dozens of executive orders, and hundreds of immigrant arrests led by ICE, many Americans are reeling from political and financial upheaval caused by the Trump administration. Around 150 liberal groups, including unions, climate and advocacy groups like MoveOn, called for a wide set of #HandsOff rallies around the country on Saturday, April 5. The Philadelphia rally, one of several in the region, gathered at City Hall in Center City and marched down Market Street to the lawn near the National Constitution Center and Independence Hall for a series of speeches from politicians and people who’ve worked at institutions under threat like the Environmental Protection Agency and US Postal Service.

Supporters tallied turnout from at least 1200 rallies and estimated attendance at more than 3 million, or nearly 1% of the entire US population. (An interactive map with media from 1150 locations is available.) Many protests were in out-of-the-way, conservative-leaning locales like Bolivia, North Carolina, Nanuet, New York, and Tehachapi, California (all in counties that went 55% to 60% for Trump in November 2024).

While the crowds in many locations leaned towards an older demographic, it was a strikingly large mobilization and the largest one since Donald Trump was inaugurated in January; it’s the clearest indicator yet that the Baby Boomer generation hasn’t checked out of political activity in retirement, especially as the systems of the Social Security Administration threaten to unravel. The turnout at the Philly event was both older and more white than the city’s demographics.

Autonomous Action On Lawn Of UPenn President Larry Jameson

  • March 23, 2025 1:33 am

from Instagram

[Video Here]

Wake up, Larry.

At 7am this morning an autonomous action gathered on the front lawn of UPenn President Larry Jameson to wake him up from his comfortable slumber as he allows the university to fund Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians through investments and providing shelter and resources to Ghost Robotics and the GRASP labs which industrialize the mass extermination campaign.

Philly All Out To Free Mahmoud Khalil

  • March 14, 2025 1:28 am

from Instagram

Send from trusted comrades. FREE MAHMOUD KHALIL!! ❤️‍🔥🇵🇸❤️‍🔥🇵🇸❤️‍🔥 See ya’ll tomorrow!!!
Send from trusted comrades. FREE MAHMOUD KHALIL!! ❤️‍🔥🇵🇸❤️‍🔥🇵🇸❤️‍🔥 See ya’ll tomorrow!!!
[EMERGENCY RALLYFriday March 14
5pm
City Hall

Bring signs and posters and remember to mask up!

Rallly coordinate by autonomous individuals not affiliate with any organization
FREE MAHMOUD, FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS]

Coverage of Protest Against Presidential Debate

  • September 13, 2024 1:45 am

from Mastodon

Several arrests were just made during a violent escalation by the Philadelphia Police after a flare was lit at tonight’s protest against the presidential candidates, the debate and Israel’s ongoing genocide on Palestinians.

Watch LIVE: unicornriot.ninja/2024/protest

Pro-Palestine/anti-occupation graffiti seen on & around the US Post Office/Passport Office after tonight’s demonstration outside the presidential debate was forcefully dispersed by riot police

“Free Palestine” spray painted in black under a sculpture next to the fancy govt building entrance to the US Post Office and Passport Office in center city Philadelphia

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“Fuck Isra-Hell” spray painted in black above a black upside down triangle on a wide sidewalk

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“Free Gaza” spray painted in black on a sidewalk

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“Intifada” spray painted in red on a sidewalk

Graffiti at US Post Office/Passport Office in Philly, cont’d:

“Amerikkka” written in red all capital letters in spray paint on the stone wall just to the right of the rounded off entryway in front of thick turnstile style brown metal doors with thin window slots in them by large glass windows in the front of the US Post Office and Passport Office in center city Philadelphia at night

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“Fuck PPD” written in all caps in black spray paint on a stone wall just below the US Post Office/Passport Office window through which a well-“85 lobby is visible with about a half dozen green triangles seen protruding from the walls which read “All Services”

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Arabic lettering written under a similar looking widow view as shown in the last image

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“Free Palestine” written in all caps in black on a sidewalk close to the street in between a square venting grate on the bottom left and a computerized parking meter and street lamp base on top right

Protest Near Harris-Trump Presidential Debate Opposes Bipartisan Support for Israeli Genocide in Palestine

  • September 11, 2024 1:32 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA – Protesters opposing the ongoing Israeli genocide in occupied Palestine are gathering near the security perimeter erected outside the National Constitution Center — the site of the first debate between 2024 presidential candidates Kamala Harris (D) and Donald Trump (R). A call to “shut down the presidential debate for Gaza” was announced by the Philly Palestine Coalition to rally at City Hall, which is east of the debate site.

Pennsylvania is considered the largest swing state in the presidential election. The statewide winner will take all 19 electoral votes. Street closures entered effect Tuesday morning on Arch and Market streets between 4th and 7th streets in Philadelphia’s historic Old City east of Center City. Eastbound lanes of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge are also closed. Watch our live coverage.

A flyer from the Philly Palestine Coalition circulated online

While Trump has promised he would help Israel “finish the problem” in Gaza, the Biden administration, which includes Kamala Harris as Vice President, has repeatedly gone out of its way to continue arming, funding and politically supporting Israel throughout its deliberate mass killings of displaced civilian children, women and men alongside the targeting of life-supporting infrastructure in Gaza, including the destruction of hospitals and water treatment plants and the torture of healthcare workers.

As of September 10, at least 41,020 Palestinian residents of Gaza have been reported killed and 94,925 injured, while 692 Palestinians in the West Bank were killed and more than 5,700 injured. At least 1,139 Israelis have been killed and 8,730 injured, according to Al Jazeera, based on regional agencies’ data.

Protests outside the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July criticized Trump and the Republican Party’s alignment with Israel’s racist and far-right government; demonstrations during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago late last month highlighted the fact that no Palestinians were allowed to speak onstage at the party’s national gathering.

Clips below from Milwaukee and Chicago highlight the scope of Palestine protests that have been the most visible element of dissension around the presidential race.

While paying lip service to talk of a ceasefire, the Biden-Harris administration has continued directly enabling Israel despite the International Court of Justice’s findings that allegations of genocide are “plausible” in regards to the invasion of Gaza and that Israel’s occupation of Palestine is illegal under international human rights law and should be ended.

Recent reporting has also shown that Israeli authorities are subjecting Palestinians held in crowded administrative detention camps such as Sde Teiman to rape and torture at a mass scale – a revelation that has apparently not impacted Harris’ public, unconditional support for Israel in recent media appearances.

For more from Palestine click on image below.

Students Make Demands After Philly University of the Arts Moves to Close

  • June 6, 2024 1:57 am

from Unicorn Riot

PHILADELPHIA, PA — Center City’s premiere arts university abruptly announced it’s shutting its doors, sending the entire community scrambling. Its accreditation was also pulled amid claims that a multi-million dollar budget gap had suddenly emerged. Some students assembled on the morning of June 4 to read demands:

Also the massive downtown real estate holdings are another subject of interest. Other nearby students have protested recently at UPenn and Drexel over Palestine divestment.

Another May Day Report

  • May 6, 2024 1:53 am

Submission

After a lapse of three years anarchists held their own May Day demonstration. May first is an anarchist celebration of spring, remembrance, rebellion and it’s important to me that the left doesn’t completely co-opt this anarchic holiday. I’m heartened that anarchists have organized our own way of commemorating and celebrating the arrival of May. I encourage anyone who doesn’t know the history of May Day to look up the Haymarket Affair in Chicago and how anarchists across the world have celebrated.

The May Day demonstration was held behind the Juvenile Justice Center (a prison for kids) in West Philly. A group of us walked over from a nearby meeting location, and upon arriving shot fireworks, lit flares, howled against the police, and made a lot of noise. The kids locked inside could be seen silhouetted against the frosted windows, banging in response to our loud presence. The police arrived very shortly afterward and the crowd dispersed.

The police’s arrival was surprisingly fast. Previous demonstrations at the same prison have lasted longer and were met with less police, about five police cars showed up after at most three minutes. I have some thoughts on why this may have happened. The assembled crowd was dressed in anonymous multi-colored clothing. This wouldn’t be particularly suspect if people were seen in twos or threes but a large group of masked people still draws attention. Moving from one location to another in a more dispersed way or meeting up behind the prison without all walking together could have reduced the attention we drew to ourselves on the street. The benefit of not wearing all black means that we don’t stand out in a crowd or on the street but if we are the crowd then that benefit is lost. This combined with the fact that there were a good amount of people on the street leads me to believe someone called the police on the group as we walked over. There’s no way to know for certain, but, we can learn from the situation and figure out ways to be more discreet when the situation calls for it moving forward.

Free Palestine!
Solidarity to the struggle at Rockview prison!
Down with the prisons! Up with the spring!
Happy May Day!

May Day reportback

  • May 3, 2024 1:18 am

Submission

Philly May Day demo-actions are back baby!!!!

This May Day, Philly anarchists went back to doing what we do best….anti-gentrification and anti-prison actions. The evening started out with a demo at the juvenile detention center in West Philly. Around 20 of us walked from the meet-up spot to the parking lot behind the facility, where demonstrators can be heard from the kids’ dorms. There were a bunch of loud fireworks, flares, and anti-cop chants, as locked-up kids pounded on their windows in response. This unfortunately only lasted about two minutes, as apparently the cops’ response times to these kinds of demos has dramatically improved. Cop cruisers immediately pulled up and blocked both exits we’d been planning to use, and one cop car attempted to run over a couple of our friends on their way out. Luckily as far as we know there were no arrests and everyone got out fine in the end, if a little shaken.

Around twelve of us met back up a couple hours later to attack a very ugly new apartment building on Spruce St and 49th St. This is another classic of Philly anarchy – terrorizing gentrifiers by mobbing up to attack a new building while its residents are already living in it. At least ten of its huge windows were taken out and a paint bomb or two got thrown.

Attacking isn’t always easy; most of the time it takes a lot of courage just to show up and a lot of planning to make sure everyone gets out safely. We appreciate how carefully these two actions were organized and everyone who showed up. Let’s keep being brave and supporting each other and maybe one day we can take down Amerikkka 😉

Solidarity to the comrades struggling in and around SCI Rockview, you are not alone! Long live anarchy! <3

“Stop the World For Gaza”: Thousands Take Part in Direct Actions and Blockades Against the War

  • April 18, 2024 1:14 am

from It’s Going Down

[This post only contains information relevant to Philadelphia and the surrounding area, to read the entire article follow the above link.]
Thousands took part in mass direct actions and blockades on Monday, in protest of the ongoing genocide and ethnic cleansing within the occupied Palestinian territories by the state of Israel and supported directly by the United States. The demonstrations take place against a backdrop of rising public support for a ceasefire and also represented a dramatic turn toward direct action and more autonomous, horizontal organizing efforts and away from simply symbolic mass marches and demonstrations.

As the A15 Actions account wrote:

Over 65 cities, 19 countries and six continents took collective risk for a liberated Palestine. This is just the beginning. Activists across the globe carried out large-scale actions Monday as part of A15, a coordinated economic blockade in solidarity with Palestine.

U.S. organizers blockaded factories and corporate offices of weapons manufacturers, including the Boeing plant in St. Charles, Missouri; Pratt & Whitney in Middletown, Connecticut; and the Lockheed Martin building in Arlington, Virginia.

Protesters took over major roads in Philadelphia and Oakland, while others rallied in front of government buildings and cultural sites. In San Francisco, activists shut down both sides of the Golden Gate Bridge in a major disruption to traffic in the Bay Area.

Activists in New York marched across the Brooklyn Bridge and rallied on both the Brooklyn and Manhattan sides of the iconic bridge. Dozens of people were arrested in the peaceful action, including reporters covering the protest.

Across multiple cities, police made hundreds of arrests and in Fremont, shot off projectile weapons in an attempt to stop demonstrators from blockading a Telsa factory. Just as they did under Trump, Republican bureaucrats like Tom Cotton called for far-Right vigilante violence against demonstrators stating, “I would encourage most people anywhere that gets stuck behind criminals like this who are trying to block traffic to take matters into their own hands [and] put an end to this nonsense.” In the face of the success of the A15 actions, many pundits on the Right and neo-liberal Center have also started a fear mongering campaign about the movement using “escalated tactics,” while student organizers continue to face expulsions, evictions, and repression.

Northeast

Philadelphia, PA: Demonstrators in Philadelphia organized blockades and marches across the city. According to Unicorn Riot, “The crowd marched to the offices of arms manufacturers Day & Zimmerman, who provides components for weapons being used by Israel against Gaza.” A report on social media wrote:

The demonstrations began at 8:15 a.m., when dozens of protesters disrupted rush hour traffic as they waved Palestinian flags during a teach-in. Simultaneously, another group led a funeral procession of cars up I-95, while a third marched near City Hall, stopping at various locations to call attention to connections between Philadelphia’s economy and Israel’s occupation in Gaza.

The Philadelphia Police Department confirmed that 67 people were arrested for obstruction of highway during the morning protests. Officers issued civil citations to 41 demonstrators, who were then released from custody, said Sgt. Eric Gripp, a department spokesperson.” Philly Inquierer: https://www.inquirer.com/news/philadelphia/protests-gaza-palestine-irs-building-university-city-20240415.html

“In Philadelphia, people across the city took part in #PhillyA15 coordinated actions aimed at disrupting the local economy and blockading major traffic routes on the East Coast to demand an end to the genocide and occupation in Palestine being carried out by the apartheid government of Israel. Key weapons manufacturer, Day & Zimmerman, and Philadelphia City Hall both went on lockdown as a result of these actions.

Over 50 people blockaded the major intersection at 30th Street and Schuylkill Avenue, effectively stopping traffic on 76 in both directions. Across town a coordinated funeral procession mourning the slaughter of more than 38,000 Palestinians—including over 14,000 children—slowed traffic on both 95 north and south bound to a near stop, while Philly Palestine Coalition took to the streets in center city with 200 people who walked out of work in solidarity with the worldwide, coordinated economic blockade #A15. Sixty-nine people were arrested.

The Philadelphia economy is complicit in this ongoing genocide. In 2023, $23,657,015 of Philadelphia’s tax dollars were sent to Israel. Philadelphia is also home to weapons manufacturers Day & Zimmerman, General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, L3Harris, and Ghost Robotics who manufacture weapons of war that have been used by Israel.

It is within our collective power to stop this genocide. More importantly, it is our collective responsibility to do so. Find your humanity in the struggle! #PhillyA15 is everywhere, every day, until Palestine is Free! #a15forpalestine

 

Philly Workers March for Palestine Protests Against Israel, Militarized Robots

  • April 15, 2024 1:04 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA — On Saturday, April 13, local groups protested Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed 33,000 Palestinians according to the latest figures. The march gathered in Clark Park.

Organizers say that workers and unions are sending the message today. The Philly Palestine Coalition says groups involved include the Labor for Black Lives Coalition, Healthcare Workers for Palestine, Philly IWW, TNG Local 10/CWA Local 38010, SEIU Healthcare PA, Unity Caucus, Philly Tenants Union, & Workers World Party. According to the post, “Our goal is clear: to stand in unwavering solidarity with Palestinian workers and communities. Together, let’s demand more than just a ‘ceasefire now’ – let’s demand justice and equality for all.”

See this livestream on YouTube, Facebook or X (Twitter)

One key focus of Saturday’s march is the company Ghost Robotics which makes what organizers call “killer robots” for Israel’s military; the company’s Vision 60 “dog robot” was reportedly used for IDF experiments in the Gaza Strip.

On April 4 a rally at the University of Pennsylvania kicked off the “Shut Down Ghost Robotics“ campaign. Pics below from the April 4 event:

Since the April 4 event we have been checking more into Ghost Robotics and have some additional information to release later. We also have a report from a March 28 protest at Day & Zimmermann, a munitions manufacturer for the IDF headquartered in Philadelphia.