Some of the eco-warriors snapped by The Post for Friday’s printing press protest are aging hippies and professional activists who have previously clashed with cops at similar recalcitrant demonstrations.
At least 13 members of Extinction Rebellion have been charged over protesting outside the Queens printing facility used by the Post’s parent company, News Corp, which is preventing newspapers from being delivered to tens of thousands of New Yorkers.
For Janet Apuzzo of Wallkill, NY, the latest ordeal was her second run-in with the NYPD in as many weeks. The 56-year-old had boasted online that he was one of 13 climate activists arrested in Manhattan on April 17 for blocking a busy intersection near the Flatiron Building.
According to Apuzzo’s social media, she’s a proud member of Extinction Rebellion and self-employed as an “artist/healer.”
Seward “Ward” Ogden, 62, and his wife Maria Ogden, 59 – who live on a small farm in Vermont – have also had encounters with police officers at some of the group’s previous protests.
Seward, a retired US Navy pilot, was among those arrested in 2020 for trespassing and disturbance of the peace after he unfurled a giant banner reading “Climate Justice Now” over the famous Citgo sign in Boston’s Kenmore Square.
His wife, who is a registered nurse, was subpoenaed to appear in court on the same charges as her husband, Boston.com reported at the time.
Maria has previously said she was spurred on to become a climate activist after hearing a speech by Swedish firebrand teenage Greta Thunberg in 2019
William Regan, 43, of Redonda Beach, California, said on his LinkedIn page that he was Extinction Rebellion’s “America community organizer” and before that a “national mobilizer.”
“Focusing on my work with Extinction Rebellion takes up most of my time,” the former video game maker wrote on his page.
Others taken into custody included 33-year-old Rory Varrato, a Columbia University graduate student who allegedly co-founded the New York offshoot of Extinction Rebellion in 2018.
“Politically… I identify as a green revolutionary anarcho-communist and anti-imperialist,” Varrato wrote on his personal website.
Sarah Durand, 65, who was also caught protesting the media, had previously campaigned to protect WBAI radio, which she claimed is NYC’s “only true public broadcaster.”
Fellow protesters taken into custody included: Jordan Bridges, 23; holly white, 58; Johannes Vulto, 62; James Gordon, 63; Sibyla Giles, 20; and James Merewether, 80.
All 13 have been charged with obstructing government administration, disorderly conduct and criminal trespassing, police officers told the Post. They were each beaten with desk tickets.
At least 19 other people were summoned, according to police.
https://nypost.com/2022/04/22/extremist-eco-warriors-arrested-over-the-post-printing-press-protest/ Extremist eco-warriors arrested for protesting The Post printer