In Episode 142 [8] of the CounterVortex podcast [9], Bill Weinberg takes on the ugly backlash against bicyclists in New York City, which has escalated from petitioning against bike lanes [10] to dangerous anti-bicycle vigilantism [11]. The recent killing of Chelsea resident Gavin Lee [12] by a hit-and-run bicyclist became a rallying point for the anti-bike partisans. But 255 New Yorkers were killed by motorists last year [13], their names quickly forgotten by all but their loved ones. The killing of young bicycle messenger Robyn Hightman [14] by a truck driver in 2019 briefly sparked protests [15]. But the names of most victims of automotive terror quickly go down the media Memory Hole. Weinberg recounts some of the recent lives claimed by motorists in the city: Be Tran [16], Carling Mott [17], Christian Catalan [18], Lynn Christopher [19], Karina Larino [20], Eric Salitsky [21], Raife Milligan [22]. It is the auto-centric system that pits pedestrians and bicyclists against each other. What is needed is the dismantling of this system, and its replacement with one that centers human beings and human-powered transport—as is already underway [23] in several European cities. Listen on SoundCloud [8] or via Patreon [24].
Production by Chris Rywalt [27]
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