Tue Sep 10 17:37:58 UTC 2024: ## Anti-Israel Protesters Sued for Blocking Chicago O’Hare Airport
**Chicago, IL** – A lawsuit filed Monday alleges that anti-Israel protesters who blocked access to Chicago O’Hare International Airport in April engaged in an “illegal and tortious conspiracy” to falsely imprison motorists. The suit, filed by the Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute, seeks justice for a man who was trapped in traffic for over an hour and missed his flight due to the blockade.
The protesters, who chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!”, were part of a coordinated effort called “A15 Action” that aimed to disrupt major traffic arteries across the country. The lawsuit alleges that the group targeted the Golden Gate Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, and Seattle-Tacoma Airport, and that their actions may have been “part of a broader strategy promoted by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.”
The lawsuit argues that while the First Amendment protects the right to protest, the protesters went beyond peaceful expression by “using force to block expressways full of bystanders trapped on the roads to create a massive public nuisance.”
The plaintiff, Christopher Manhart, is seeking to hold the protesters accountable for the disruption, arguing that they interfered with his and others’ “right to freely travel.” The lawsuit names several defendants, including Jewish Voice for Peace, National Students for Justice in Palestine, and the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights. These groups have been contacted for comment.
“We support the right to protest, but a premeditated attack that injures innocents is not protected by the First Amendment,” stated Theodore Frank, an attorney for the Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute. “By holding the disrupters and their organizational sponsors civilly accountable, we hope to curtail foreign-sponsored and antisemitic actions that harm innocent Americans and puts them at risk.”
First Piper 