Democratic House candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier and more than 100 other protesters were arrested in Manhattan on Thursday during a demonstration against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at the United Nations, as progressive lawmakers and activists blocked traffic to demand an end to U.S. military aid.
Darializa Avila Chevalier and Lawmakers Arrested Outside United Nations
New York City police officers moved in on a large street demonstration near the United Nations headquarters on Thursday afternoon, taking more than 100 people into custody after protesters sat in the roadway at First Avenue and East 39th Street. The gathering brought together progressive elected officials, political candidates, and prominent public figures to protest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of his scheduled address to the U.N. General Assembly.
Among those detained by the New York Police Department were City Council Members Chi Ossé and Alexa Avilés, alongside Darializa Avila Chevalier, the Democratic nominee for New York’s 13th congressional district. More than a dozen elected officials and candidates, including congressional nominee Brad Lander, state Sen. Jabari Brisport, City Council Members Sandy Nurse and Tiffany Cabán, and Assembly Member Emily Gallagher, were among the roughly 250 protesters who sat in the street at the corner of 1st Avenue and 39th Street in Manhattan. According to an organizer with Jewish Voice for Peace, the total number of people arrested topped 100, and included Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez, Gallagher, and state legislative candidates Aber Kawas, Christian Celeste Tate, David Orkin, and Illapa Sairitupac. Whistleblower Chelsea Manning and actors Susan Sarandon, Hannah Einbinder, and Elliot Page also joined the demonstration, with Page and others seen blocking traffic before police intervention.
“As the Democratic Nominee for New York’s 13th Congressional District, I refuse to allow a war criminal to roam the streets of our city unchallenged. I refuse to play host to a man who has overseen the slaughter or injury of more than 64,000 children in Gaza with American taxpayer dollars.”
The midday action was organized by pro-Palestinian group Jewish Voice for Peace, just blocks away from the U.N. headquarters, to protest both Netanyahu’s speech at the U.N. and the United States’ aid to Israel’s military, including throughout the war in Gaza. The group was surrounded by around 100 New York City police officers, including members of the Strategic Response Group. About an hour into the protest, officers moved in and arrested dozens of protesters who were left, including Avila Chevalier, Ossé, and Avilés, without issue.
Broader Protests and Political Friction in New York City
The demonstration at First Avenue was part of a larger wave of visible dissent across Manhattan.
Protesters chanted slogans targeting U.S. financial support for foreign military operations. Avilés addressed reporters with her hands cuffed in zip ties just before being led away by police.
Inside the United Nations, Netanyahu used his address to direct pointed criticism at New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, accusing him of creating an unsafe environment for Jewish residents and falsely accusing Israel of genocide. Mayor Mamdani fired back in a statement, noting that Netanyahu remains the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. Just before the speech, Mamdani shared video footage of himself planting an olive tree at Gracie Mansion alongside Palestinian families from Gaza.
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