Failing the protest

Members of the Decolonize This Place movement who Friday night blocked streets, vandalized turnstiles and painted anti-police obscenities on subway walls have forfeited their right to be taken seriously. They moved beyond legitimate protest.

All New Yorkers have a right to engage in peaceful demonstrations, regardless of their message. No one is allowed to destroy public property and interfere with fellow New Yorkers’ rights to get home, go to work, go to the doctor or get to class.

By wrecking a transit system they claim to want to save, the self-styled populists prove themselves to be out-of-touch elitists.

As for their goals: The idea of no-fare public transit dates back decades. We think it’s unwise, but it’s at least debatable. Still, it’s ironic that the demand is surging now, as Albany hammers out congestion pricing, which will redirect billions of dollars from drivers, to the subways. And as the city ramps up spending on half-priced MetroCards for thousands of low-income straphangers.

As for the piggybacked complaint that police don’t belong underground, especially not to stop anyone from jumping turnstiles: As long as it costs something to ride a subway or bus, farebeating is a crime. Those who commit it are stealing from the public.

Demonstrations work best when they generate public sympathy. Making New Yorkers’ commutes more difficult probably did just the opposite.