Four people were arrested Saturday when they allegedly attempted to walk onto the Stevenson Expressway near west suburban Forest View as part of a protest of the Israel-Hamas war.
Illinois State Police said troopers responded about 2:40 p.m. to a call of people getting out of their vehicles and attempting to walk onto Interstate 55 from a ramp near Harlem Avenue.
Husam Marajda, an organizer with the U.S. Palestinian Community Network of Chicago, said the four were part of a car caravan was that was attempting to make their way to downtown Chicago to join Pro-Palestinian rally as part of the group’s efforts to draw attention to the war’s deadly toll on civilians living in Gaza.
Marajda, 29, said local and state police officers blocked the caravan from driving onto the expressway and so a group of people got out of their cars and started to walk.
State police said the four were arrested and potentially facing charges of disobeying a police officer, obstruction of justice, battery to a police officer and resisting arrest.
Marajda said lawyers had been called to represent the four.
Groups protesting the war have been regularly using car caravans to raise awareness for their cause, including by disrupting traffic. Last month, one large caravan included hundreds of cars, as well as semitrailers.
“We are not going to let these arrests or the police stop us,” Marajda said. “We are not going to stop as long as there is a genocide happening.”
