Why is the protester still on top the Frederick Douglass Bridge in DC?

Despite saying he would “soon” come down, a protester has remained on top of the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge in Washington, DC since May 1, impacting traffic and extending a dayslong standoff with police.

Guido Reichstadter climbed the 168-foot bridge Friday, then draped a black banner and set up a tent while making the bridge his home for the past four days.

Here’s what to know about Reichstadter’s protest and how it is affecting locals in the nation’s capital.

Why is there a man on top of the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge?

After Reichstadter climbed the bridge Friday, he identified himself as a protester, writing on X that he was “calling on the people of the United States to bring an immediate end to the Trump regime’s illegal war on Iran and the removal of the regime power through mass nonviolent direct action and non-cooperation.”

He has posted on X throughout his protest, reminding his followers of his cause as he thwarts attempts from the DC police to bring him down.

“The Trump regime occupying the office of the US executive is prosecuting a criminal war of aggression against the nation of Iran, enabled by the refusal of Congress to assert its constitutional power, and by the continued submission of the majority of the US population to this intolerable state of affairs without effective civil resistance,” he wrote on X, saying it’s the public’s responsibility to nonviolently put an end to Trump’s presidency.

Reichstadter said May 4 he hasn’t eaten for days, but previously told NewsNation he went on a 30-day hunger strike while protesting AI outside the Anthropic headquarters.

He has run out of water, however.

“I’ve got the stamina to stay up here a bit longer,” he told WTOP Monday.

What impact is the protest having in Washington, DC?

Reichstadter’s protest has caused lanes to shut down on the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge, but lanes had reopened for traffic late Monday morning.

Tuesday morning, all lanes were open for traffic, but the pedestrian walkway was closed, according to the Metropolitan Area Transportation Operations Coordination (MATOC) Program.

If he stays on top of the bridge into Tuesday night, it’s unclear how his protest could impact people traveling nearby to the Washington Nationals game.

“My efforts here have had impacts on the local community and its people, and it is my desire not to harm but to work in communication, to lift up and to contribute what strength I can to the ongoing struggle for rights and freedom which this community has been engaged in for years,” Reichstadter said Sunday.

Police said Monday that their negotiators will remain on the scene.

Mike Stunson is the DC Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network.