Some people speak their mind at meetings, while others voice opinions in letters to the newspaper or on social media.
But one group uses bridges to get their message out. In this case, the Boston Bridge Brigade assembles on a Savin Hill bridge every Tuesday morning to voice their message over I-93 North to drivers heading into town during the morning commute.
The small brigade formed last year, and is made up of folks from all over the region, but includes some Dorchester residents who have become die-hard participants.
On Tuesday, Dorchester residents Robin B. and Kathleen Schnaidt were part of the group that held up the message, “No Troops In Iran.” Seth Daniel photo
“It’s a nationwide movement; they call it visualization brigades,” said Kathleen Schnaidt. “We formed here a year ago. If our messages can’t be put on the news, then we can put them on a bridge. It lets people know who are maybe with us that someone is speaking up and they’re not alone…I think we were the first group in Boston doing this, but there are others now.”
The volunteers assemble around 8 a.m. on Tuesdays in Savin Hill and does the same in Newton on Thursdays over the Mass Pike. This Tuesday, their message was “No Troops in Iran.” Another anti-war message — “War Crimes Don’t Hide Sex Crimes”— captured two weeks ago by The Reporter in a photo went viral on the internet with over 1.5 million views on the Reporter’s Instagram page alone.
Robin said they have more than just anti-war messages, to include immigration, Epstein files, and even health care matters.
“I liked the one about RFK Jr., ‘Dangerous Dumbass,’” she laughed.
Schnaidt says a core group in the organization work together each week to figure out what the message will be and how to execute it with their limited numbers and space on the fence-lined bridge on Savin Hill Avenue. State Police have also instructed them not to use bungee cords to secure their letters, so they also have to come up with a slogan that volunteers can hold in place.
“At this point we have a large collection of letters, and we can re-use them many times,” she said. “We went out and bought a lot of poster board and we have a member who makes the letters for us.”
While the group gets a lot of honks and affirmative hand gestures from drivers, one surprise has been the large volume of “approval honks” from large semi-truck drivers.
“It really has surprised me the drivers of the big trucks honk vigorously,” said Schnaidt. “You wouldn’t expect them to support our messages, but unequivocally they do.”
As she uttered those words, the horn blast of a semi-truck sounded.
“I told you,” laughed Schnaidt and Robin.
They invited others to join them on Tuesdays at 8 a.m.
The Bridge Brigade’s message on the Savin Hill bridge on March 3 was seen by thousands of motorists and at least 1.5 million more who viewed a viral image posted on The Reporter’s social media accounts. Seth Daniel photo
