Photo by Matt Cohen.

If you thought that the Washington Post’s Courtland Milloy would never write a column where he equates cyclists to terrorists, insinuating that hitting them with a car is worth the $500 fine and no one would do anything about it, you thought wrong.

This afternoon, dozens of cyclists—along with a guest appearance from Council Chairman Phil Mendelson—gathered in front of the Post’s headquarters to protest Milloy’s column, entitled “Bicyclist bullies try to rule the road in D.C.,” to let him and his editors know that they are not, in fact bike terrorists.

“It’s absurd. It’s an absurd, illogical piece,” said Evan Wilder, a cyclist who was famously ticketed by police for following a vehicle too closely, and filmed the entire incident. But despite what most of the protesters viewed as an “absurd, ridiculous” column, most where there not to criticize Milloy, but to let him know that cyclists aren’t, what he calls, terrorists. “I think this isn’t about Courtland and his crazy ideas, it’s acknowledgement that biking is a fun, safe activity,” Wilder says. “We’re not bullies, as he says. We’re safe, friendly people.”

Still, most people there wanted Milloy to know how they felt about his column. Published on the six-year anniversary of the death of Alice Swanson, a 22-year-old woman who was fatally struck by a trash truck driver near Dupont Circle. Swanson was riding in a bike lane, wearing a helmet, and following proper bike rules—exhibiting none the qualities of cyclists Milloy described in his column. The driver, who had a history of bad driving, was never charged.

“I thought it was a little inappropriate,” Keith Muller, another cyclist attending today’s protest, said of Milloy’s column. “His reaction was jumping to conclusions,” he says. What bothered most cyclists, however, is this part of Milloy’s column:

It’s a $500 fine for a motorist to hit a bicyclist in the District, but some behaviors are so egregious that some drivers might think it’s worth paying the fine.

“The scariest part is the motorists on their phones, not paying attention,” Wilder says. He, along with most of the protesters are worried about the kind of message that sentence sends to motorists.

Of course, the column is but one person’s opinion. When asked if he thought staging such a demonstration as this one gives power and credence to Milloy’s words, Wilder said that the protest is about promoting bike culture and not “demonizing” it, as Milloy’s column does.

“I would love for Courtland Milloy to take a ride with us,” Wilder says, “and make a more informed opinion about cyclists.”