Superior Murphy

On April 15, 2024, Murphy was arrested after blocking traffic on the I-90 expressway entrance to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. The pro-BDS event was part of an international coordinated “economic blockade…in solidarity with Palestine,” known as A15 Action.

The action intended to “cause pain to the economy” by identifying and blocking “major choke points in the economy…with the aim of causing the most economic impact…[and] to disrupt and blockade…logistical hubs…”

During the blockade, anti-Israel activists chanted [00:00:03]: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!” and [00:00:14]: “Free, free Palestine!”

At a press conference, Murphy said the protesters were “brave enough to unabashedly take a stance against genocide, racial apartheid and collective punishment.”

On September 9, 2024, the Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute (HLLI) announced a class action lawsuit against seven anti-Israel activist groups and four individual activists, including Murphy, who together organized the A15 Action.

Defendant groups named [p. 1] in the Complaint included American Muslims for Palestine, National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP), the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), all identified (p.19) as organizations that both “played a role…by ensuring they had members there to participate” and gave protesters “worldwide media attention” through their social media platforms.

The Complaint also alleged [p. 2] that A15 Action “drew support from Hamas and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).”

The Complaint stated [p. 9] that Murphy was “present at the blockade and narrated a video of the blockade that was posted to social media…For her participation in the blockade, she was arrested by the Chicago Police Department.”

The Complaint further claimed [p. 17] that Murphy “helped plan and organize the operation.”

On July 17, 2024, thetriibe.com news site introduced the claim: “The ongoing violence against Palestinians in Gaza mirrors the struggle for liberation for Black people locally and abroad…” Murphy was then quoted as saying: “I believe that our liberation is directly tied. Thinking about the way that the police treat us. A lot of those tactics are learned from the Israeli government. For example, when police use the knee on the back technique. Those are things that Palestinians have also experienced.”

Murphy added: “People always ask themselves what they would do during the Holocaust or during slavery…the very least we could do is get outside and do something…Yell for those…who are being indiscriminately targeted and murdered.”