Tensions Rise in Lafayette Over Highway 24 Protests

Image c/o Thomas Smith/Bay Area Telegraph

By Matthew Colvin
News Reporter

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In March of 2021, controversy arose over a group of pro-Trump supporters demonstrating on the El Curtola overpass over CA Highway 24 in Lafayette. They were protesting the 2020 election results by hanging flags and banners over the side of the overpass to be seen by passing drivers. The group posted up on the overpass weekly for several months, ultimately prompting enough complaints from Lafayette residents that a city council meeting was held to address the issue. In the end, Caltrans and the CHP were ordered to enforce state highway regulations that prohibit hanging banners or signs on the edges of overpasses, dispersing the demonstrations. Defending the council decision, Lafayette mayor Susan Candell stated, “While the city of Lafayette recognizes and respects the First Amendment rights of all protesters, we are increasingly concerned about the safety of motorists on the highway.”

While the situation was seemingly resolved at the time, three years later demonstrations at the El Curtola overpass have become relevant once again. In the wake of recent events in Palestine and Israel, pro-Israeli supporters have begun demonstrating on the overpass, hanging flags and banners in much the same manner as the pro-Trump group had done years prior. At first, the city of Lafayette seemingly ignored the new protesters, but in the late night aftermath of one of their demonstrations, pro-Palestine supporters graffiti-ed the overpass in response.

This event brought the overpass back into the local community’s eye, leading to another city council discussion concerning the bridge and the ongoing protests being held on it. Residents expressed concerns that protests and demonstrations would only increase in frequency as the year progressed due to the upcoming presidential election, but no decision was made concerning CHP or police action. The decision, or lack thereof, certainly raises questions concerning the inconsistency of the city of Lafayette’s enforcement of highway regulations, with pro-Trump demonstrations being shut down, while pro-Israel protests have thus far been allowed to continue without police interference. As one city council member, Carl Anduri opined, “Nobody should be out there with flags, banners, marching, or protests.”

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