Two individuals found themselves facing legal consequences at the US Open on Thursday evening, as they embarked on a protest against fossil fuels, temporarily disrupting a semi-final match. Gregory Schwedock, a 35-year-old resident of New York City, and Sayak Mukhopadhyay, a 50-year-old from White Plains, New York, have been charged with criminal trespass. Additionally, Mukhopadhyay faces a disorderly conduct charge.
The incident unfolded during the second set of a match between American tennis sensation Coco Gauff, aged 19, and KarolÃna Muchová, a 27-year-old from the Czech Republic. Schwedock, Mukhopadhya, and another individual rose from their seats and vociferously chanted “end fossil fuels.” Their actions led to an unexpected 50-minute delay in the game.
In response to reports of disorderly behavior among attendees, the New York City Police promptly intervened. Notably, one protester had resorted to attaching himself to the floor with adhesive, necessitating the involvement of the Emergency Service Unit to safely free him and take him into custody.
One of the protesters later asserted that their actions were driven by a profound concern for an existential threat. Mukhopadhyay emphasized the importance of raising awareness about the precarious state of the planet, stating, “There is no tennis on a dead planet. There is no art on a deceased planet, everything that we take for granted as our way of life will cease to exist.”
Despite the disruption and the crowd’s vocal disapproval, Coco Gauff, who had been leading 1-0 in the second set, displayed remarkable composure. She recognized the right to peaceful protest, even if it inconvenienced her game, stating, “I always speak about preaching about what you feel and what you believe in. It was done in a peaceful way, so I can’t get too mad at it. Obviously, I don’t want it to happen when I’m winning, up 6-4, 1-0, and I wanted the momentum to keep going. But hey, if that’s what they felt they needed to do to get their voices heard, I can’t really get upset at it.”
The protest has been attributed to Extinction Rebellion, a radical environmentalist group. In a statement, the group highlighted the perceived negligence of governments and corporations in addressing climate and ecological crises. They argued that the current socioeconomic system’s structure fosters and subsequently disregards these crises, leaving people vulnerable to their consequences.
