Two Charged For Climate Protest At U.S. Open In New York - Forbes

Two Charged For Climate Protest At U.S. Open In New York

Topline

Two men were arrested over their climate protest that disturbed a tennis match at the U.S. Open in New York City on Thursday, the latest in several high-profile climate protests.
A protester disrupts the Women's Singles Semifinal match between Coco Gauff of the United States and ... [+] Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic on Day 11 of the 2023 U.S. Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 7, 2023, in New York City.

Key Facts

35-year-old Gregory Schwedock, of New York City, was arrested and charged with criminal trespass, while 50-year-old Sayak Mukhopadhyay, of White Plains, New York, was charged with criminal trespass and disorderly conduct, the New York Police Department told Forbes.

NYPD said they received reports that the two were acting “disorderly” and one “had apparently glued his feet to the floor.”

The two were part of a protest that caused a roughly 50-minute delay in the match between American teen sensation Coco Gauff and Karolína Muchová, of the Czech Republic, according to ESPN.

Schwedock and Mukhopadhyay, along with two others, wore shirts that read “End Fossil Fuels” while they shouted before being arrested by police.

NYPD said its emergency service unit safely freed the man whose feet were glued to the floor and took him into custody.

NYPD declined to tell Forbes why two of the protesters were arrested while the other two weren’t, but ABC News reported the other two protesters were given trespassing notices by the U.S. Open, notifying them that they’re now prohibited from the event’s grounds.

Key Background

Environmental activism group Extinction Rebellion took credit for the protest, saying in a statement online that there is “no tennis on a dead planet” and demanding an end to the human use of fossil fuels as a form of energy. Protesters have repeatedly targeted tennis matches in recent months for their climate demonstrations. At a tune-up tournament for the U.S. Open in August in Washington, D.C., a group of about a dozen people threw jumbo tennis balls, chanted and held signs protesting fossil fuel use before they were asked to leave. In July, two matches at Wimbledon in London were interrupted by environmental activists who jumped out of the stands and scattered orange confetti on the grass court. In June, a climate activist jumped onto the court and tried to glue herself to the net at the French Open. Other large events have been the target of climate protests, as well. In late August, climate protesters blocked the road into the Burning Man art and party festival in Nevada. Activists with Just Stop Oil, another climate activism group, have been gluing themselves to famous pieces of artwork.

Crucial Quote

“I always speak about preaching about what you feel and what you believe in,” Gauff said in a post-match press conference. "It was done in a peaceful way, so I can’t get too mad at it.”

Further Reading

How Chris Eubanks Turned A U.S. Open Loss Into A Winning Career Move(Forbes)

721 Matches, 405,000 Signature Cocktails, $65 Million In Prize Money: The 2023 U.S. Open By The Numbers(Forbes)

Tennis Phenom Coco Gauff Is Poised To Secure Two French Open Titles—And A Whole Lot Of Cash(Forbes)