The wolves and warriors who aimed to defend the Kosciuszko Bridge from its uncertain death may not be able to save the bridge, but they did take to the nearby streets in a “procession to honor and glory“ the bridge on Saturday.
The 78-year-old structure was replaced in April by the first phase of the new Kosciuszko Bridge. The original is set for demolition sometime this summer, and in its defense, Brian Hersey created a cheeky Facebook event that has since gone viral.
At first, they aimed to defend the bridge on its scheduled demolition date, July 11, with “swords and wolves” (both of which are illegal in New York, by the way). But with the dismantling of the historic bridge delayed, on Saturday they gathered in its shadow to honor it with a march.
The wolf warrirors gathered at 37th Street and Review Avenue, and marched along the base of the First Calvary Cemetery “in an unbroken chain of amazing strength” to Laurel Hill Boulevard. After approaching both bridges, they tried to smash the new bridge with the power of spirit. The bridge defenders “let out a war cry, and unleash a flurry of curses upon the new bridge, so that it may fall into the waters through sadness,” as Hersey described it.
Nonetheless, the new Kosciuszko continued standing, and the old bridge will not last. An official demolition date is not set for the bridge, but it won’t be blown up. It will actually be dismantled and lowered onto a barge before being taken to a recycling facility in New Jersey. So realistically, Saturday’s procession was “not a victory march so much as maybe a ‘demonstration of willingness,’” as Hersey told Metro.
The historic bridge’s designers might have been surprised to discover that in 2017, the bridge would find such passionate defenders.
“Nobody was really speaking up for the old bridge. I thought there were two sides,” Hersey previously told Metro about the inspiration for defending the bridge. “It has become an iconic part of the skyline, so there is that aspect of old New York going away.”
