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March 31, 2005
Newsday editorial: City riding hard on cyclers' freedom
From NY Newsday
BY CHARLES KOMANOFF
My wife and kids spent Purim at a Greenwich Village synagogue. I celebrated the holiday in a sausage joint near Union Square, hiding from the police.Just outside my one-man shul, on 17th Street, dozens of bicyclists were being arrested for riding without a permit, in what the cops call a "procession."
The so-called procession is the Critical Mass bike ride that takes place on the last Friday of every month, starting in Union Square Park and meandering through the city for an hour or two.
I had been riding near the front when I saw patrol cars blocking Fifth Avenue ahead. I turned around only to see the cops spreading a giant orange net on Broadway, behind me. I was trapped in the middle of the block when a fellow cyclist grabbed my arm and walked me and my bike into the sausage place.
Safe for the time being, I envisioned my family at the synagogue, re-enacting Queen Esther's rescue of the Jews from the evil Haman of Persia. Life's little ironies: Haman built a 50-cubit gallows to hang the Jews, and this Jew narrowly escaped a 50-foot net the NYPD had strung to snare another embattled minority - New York cyclists.
Haman has become more touchy of late. Almost a hundred Critical Mass rides took place in New York City without incident after the rides started in the mid-1990s. But during the Republican National Convention last summer, demonstrators on bikes showed up in much larger numbers than usual for a Critical Mass ride, infuriating the police and, apparently, the mayor.
Although the rides have gone back to business as usual, the police haven't. With each successive ride, more cops have shown up, the nets have been brought out sooner and more riders have been hauled to jail.
The city has revved up its legal assault as well. Just before last week's ride, the city sued to forbid Time's Up, an environmental group that helps publicize Critical Mass, from telling anybody about the rides. Apparently freedom of speech, in Mayor Michael Bloomberg's New York, is no more secure than freedom of the streets.
So these rides must be a terrible threat, right? Well, maybe they are. Twelve times a year, we fill 10 blocks at a time with living, breathing people instead of faceless metal boxes. Who knows where that might end?
Seriously: What is the city's problem?
It's not traffic congestion, no matter what the city says. In the worst case - there are 1,500 bicyclists, and a driver arrives at an intersection one second after the front of the ride - he or she might wait out three light cycles, a one-time delay of five minutes.
Of course, the average delay is far less, and the vast majority of drivers experience no delay at all. In the crazy context of New York traffic, Critical Mass isn't even a flea bite.
Yet the NYPD is spending a fortune deploying troops and equipment - including helicopters! - against a few cyclists who just want to ride in the streets, as the law clearly permits.
But don't try citing the law to Asst. Chief Bruce Smolka, the top cop assigned to suppress the ride, unless you want to spend a night in jail. Smolka has said in court that, while any number of cars may legally occupy a street, if an equal number of bicycles show up, they need a permit. From him.
"The roadways are designed primarily for [motor] vehicles," Smolka has testified, ignoring a century's worth of clear-cut law that grants bicycle riders the same rights as motor vehicle operators.
Why does Smolka have such a thing about cyclists? Why did Haman hate the Jews?
The media describe Critical Mass as a protest against cars and petroleum, and so it is. But more importantly, like Purim, it's about freedom: a once-a-month chance to escape from the metal cage and get around under your own power.
And freedom, as we all know, has many foes.
Posted by at 12:45 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
NY1: Delivery Man Struck And Killed By Truck In Brooklyn
From NY1
A delivery man on a bicycle was struck and killed by a truck in Brooklyn Wednesday afternoon.John Martinez, 20, was riding his bike at 75th street and Sixth Avenue in Bay Ridge when he was hit by a white truck. He was just around the corner from the bagel shop where he worked.
“He was such a nice guy,” said Erin Monohan, a regular customer. “Every time he walked in, he said, ‘Hi, how are you, be careful on your way out, have a nice day, I'll see you, whatever you need give me a call and I’ll deliver.’ He was just a really nice guy, a sweetheart.”
Police are investigating the accident.
Video available at NY1. Delivery cyclists in this city have as big a problem obeying the laws as drivers do; without details, it's impossible to know what happened in this case. A tragedy any way around it.
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March 30, 2005
NY Press Editorial: FREEDOM TO RIDE
A few weeks shy of the NYC Critical Mass's 12th anniversary, the monthly bike ride is once again under attack.On March 15, Ray Kelly, Parks Commish Adrian Benepe and the City of New York filed a fresh complaint to shut down the ride. (The last legal attempt to do so, spearheaded by the NYPD's Assistant Chief Bruce Smolka, was denied by a federal judge in December.) The new complaint, which names four TIME'S UP! activists and those "in concert" with them, seeks to enjoin anyone from promoting or advertising Critical Mass in any way. It also states that any gathering of 20 or more people requires a permit.
Civil rights attorney Norm Siegel has correctly decried the city's action as a blatant violation of the First Amendment, calling it "prior restraint" (no judge has ever ruled Critical Mass illegal). According to Siegel, Americans are subject to arrest only when we've broken the law, not before. Citizens, even ones on bicycles, have a right to gather peacefully and participate in legal activity. But instead of screaming foul play, New York Press prefers to give city officials the benefit of the doubt. Important folks like Ray Kelly and Adrian Benepe have a lot going on. Maybe it's only the more visible gatherings of 20 plus, like Critical Mass, that make it onto their cluttered radar screens and spur them to action in the name of public safety. In the spirit of good citizenship, we've compiled a list of groups that meet every day in New York City in numbers greater than 20 who must be reined in to preserve the peace.
The jogging group Frontrunners New York meets weekly in Central Park for runs that well exceed 20. Walking tours—definite violators. In McCarren Park, a number of large and illegal soccer games occur; adult Brazilians tear up the grass, while nearby packs of rug rats disturb the peace and offend the childless with their stray, very dangerous kiddie soccer balls and gang-like uniforms. Then you've got chess games overrunning Washington Square Park. And those quilting fiends from Sewing World Commons clogging up the garment district on ill-conceived fabric runs. Fire-wielding picnickers swarm in Prospect Park. And let's not forget large groups of birdwatchers—those wackos endanger themselves as well as others.
The greatest offenders of all are the roving packs of pubescent schoolchildren choking on their own giggles: a daily peril. When the last school bell tolls, the little shriekers careen onto sidewalks and subway cars, endangering everyone around them with swinging backpacks, minefields of zits, dangling iPod cords and NC-17 vernacular. In the case of a field trip, they can strike at any hour, sending those in their path into a panic, and sometimes into traffic—voluntarily. Ray Kelly, we entreat you, in the name of public order: Put an end to the madness!
On second thought, we'll just see you in court.
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March 29, 2005
Dirt Rag: Critical Issue for NYC Cyclists
From Dirt Rag
By: Andrew O’Reilly
Last Friday, the NYPD arrested 37 cyclists participating in a Critical Mass ride and charged them with disorderly conduct. They also seized 50 bicycles which cyclists locked on nearby lampposts and signs.This is just one incident from an ongoing feud between the NYPD and cyclists in the city, which began around the time of Republican National Convention when the police arrested 400 cyclists. The city has also filed a compliant to require permits for the Critical Mass rides.
The city argues that the rides through Manhattan has brought automobile traffic to a standstill. Charlie Komanoff, an economist and environmental activist, calculated that a large Critical Mass ride creates almost no difference in traffic delay given the regular amount of traffic in Manhattan.
Transportation Alternatives, a nonprofit advocacy group, argued that the NYPD had no right to confiscate the bikes given that there are 6375 miles of street in New York City and only 3400 legal bike racks. This is about one legal bike rack every two miles or one bike rack for every 33 cyclists.
For more information on this issue and to see what can be done to help, visit Transportation Alternatives’ website.
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March 28, 2005
NYT: MANHATTAN: NEW COMPLAINTS BY CYCLISTS
Participants in the Critical Mass bicycle rides again accused the police yesterday of trying to thwart the group's protests. Officers arrested 37 cyclists as they left Union Square on Friday night, and seized 50 bicycles locked nearby, the police said. The rides take place on the last Friday of each month to advocate cleaner forms of transportation, and participants have had several confrontations with the police. Last September, the police sawed through locks and seized bicycles in Midtown. In October, a federal judge enjoined the police from sawing locks during that month's ride unless bicycles belonged to people being charged or were locked in places that obstructed traffic or people. The lawyer Norman Siegel, above, who has represented members of Critical Mass, said the seizures were "without legal basis." But a police spokesman, Jason Post, said, "Only bikes in violation of the law were seized." The cyclists arrested on Friday were charged with disorderly conduct. Colin Moynihan (NYT)
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Democracy Now! : NYPD Attempts To Criminalize Bike Riders Taking Part in Critical Mass
In 1992 in San Francisco cyclists started riding together monthly to assert themselves as traffic in a ride that became known as Critical Mass. Since then, the ride has spread to over 300 cities around the world.Last August, when thousands descended on New York for the Republican National Convention, over three thousand bicyclists and skaters participated in a Critical mass ride on the eve of the start of street protests. That night, police moved in on the bikers and arrested hundreds. Over a week and a half surrounding the RNC, police arrested nearly 400 bike riders. Since then, activists and civil liberties groups say the City of New York has been targeting bicyclists and Critical Mass in particular.
Last week, the city filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent the group TIME'S UP! from promoting or advertising events that the city alleges to be illegal. The lawsuit also states that TIME'S UP! and the general public cannot participate in riding or gathering at the Critical Mass bike ride. It claims that any event whatsoever with 20 or more persons requires a permit. On Friday, hundreds of bicycle riders defied the city and participated in a Critical Mass ride. Police arrested some 37 riders and officers confiscated dozens of bicycles. The police say they made the arrests because they say Critical Mass was "parading without a permit."
More - including interviews with Norman Siegel and Matthew Roth - at Democracy Now! There are no transcripts as of this posting, but transcripts are usually provided fairly quickly - keep checking back.
Posted by at 04:07 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
1010WINS : "Critical Mass" Riders: NYPD Took Our Bikes
Bicyclists participating in the monthly Critical Mass rides accused the police of trying to suppress their protests.Police arrested 37 people involved in Friday night's ride and charged them with disorderly conduct. The also seized 50 bicycles that were locked nearby. The group's lawyer, Norman Seigal, said the seizures were illegal, but police said only bikes that violated city law were seized.
About 200 people attended the rally.
The city had filed a complaint seeking to require permits for a monthly bicycle rally through Manhattan that has brought automobile traffic to a standstill. Summonses were issued last Tuesday to four participants in the Critical Mass ride, ordering them to respond to the complaint.
The city wants to require permits for use of city streets and of Union Square, the rally's starting point, and to bar participants from publicizing the ride.
The event -- held the last Friday of each month in Manhattan -- gained notoriety last summer, when police made dozens of arrests at a ride held several days before the start of the Republican National Convention.
Last December, the city filed a lawsuit to require cyclists to obtain parade permits, saying the rides threaten public safety by creating traffic chaos. But a federal judge dismissed the case, saying the issue should be resolved in state court.
Posted by at 04:05 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
AP: Police Crack Down on Monthly Bike Protest
Associated Press, via WNYC
NEW YORK, NY, March 28, 2005 — Bicyclists participating in the monthly Critical Mass rides accused the police of trying to suppress their protests.Police arrested 37 people involved in Friday night's ride and charged them with disorderly conduct. The also seized 50 bicycles that were locked nearby. The group's lawyer, Norman Seigal, said the seizures were illegal, but police said only bikes that violated city law were seized.
About 200 people attended the rally.
The city had filed a complaint seeking to require permits for a monthly bicycle rally through Manhattan that has brought automobile traffic to a standstill. Summonses were issued last Tuesday to four participants in the Critical Mass ride, ordering them to respond to the complaint.
The city wants to require permits for use of city streets and of Union Square, the rally's starting point, and to bar participants from publicizing the ride.
The event - held the last Friday of each month in Manhattan - gained notoriety last summer, when police made dozens of arrests at a ride held several days before the start of the Republican National Convention.
Last December, the city filed a lawsuit to require cyclists to obtain parade permits, saying the rides threaten public safety by creating traffic chaos. But a federal judge dismissed the case, saying the issue should be resolved in state court.
Posted by at 01:59 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
NY1: Protest Riders Say Police Seized Bikes Illegally
Some people who participated in Friday’s Critical Mass protest ride in Manhattan say police confiscated their bicycles without justification.The riders say that once police threatened them with arrest, they got off their bikes and began to walk away from the rest of the group. But they were arrested anyway, they say, and their bikes were loaded onto a truck and taken away.
Other riders say they locked their bikes but that officer cut the chains with power saws and took them.
“I watched as my bike lock was cut by a saw by the NYPD,” Jaimie Favaro, a protestor whose bike was confiscated, said at a news conference Sunday. “I use my bike daily for commuting, and I am absolutely devastated about the illegal theft of my bicycle by the NYPD."
About 200 riders showed up for Friday’s ride, and 37 people were arrested.
Critical Mass organizes large rides through Manhattan on the last Friday of every month to protest pollution produced by vehicle traffic. The city and the group are involved in a court battle over whether permits are needed for the rides.
“You know we get together once a month to have this small action of peace and an alternative lifestyle that gets pretty violently challenged by the powers of the city,” said William Laviano, whose bike was also seized.
The NYPD says it confiscated 50 bikes in connection with a law violation. Police say bikes used in violation of the law will be taken regardless if any connection to a protest.
Video of teh report is available in RealMedia format at NY1. If you want to watch, I strongly recommend RealAlternative rather than the official RealMedia adware / viewer.
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CM March 2005 interview podcast
A blog called "bikescape" has a podcast interview with Jim Dyer, an NYC CM participant, about this month's ride... it's online here.
Posted by at 10:05 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 27, 2005
March CM photos online
New photos at suckapants.
Posted by at 08:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Newsday: Critical Mass cyclists cry foul
From NY Newsday
By LUIS PEREZ
Bicycle advocates, 37 of whom were arrested Friday night during the latest Critical Mass ride, vowed Sunday to fight city efforts to require permits for the monthly bicycle rally.Summonses were issued Tuesday to four alleged volunteer leaders of the Critical Mass ride, ordering them to respond to a complaint the city has filed seeking to require those permits, said Norman Siegel, an attorney for the group.
The city has filed a complaint seeking to require permits for a monthly bicycle rally through Manhattan that typically brings automobile traffic to a standstill.
The city wants to require permits for use of city streets and of Union Square, the rally's starting point, and to bar participants from publicizing the ride. Siegel called the complaint and the arrests of 37 bicyclists during a ride on Friday unconstitutional, and vowed to fight both in court.
"We cannot, in a democratic society, allow the police to take the law into their own hands," said Siegel.
Last December, the city filed a lawsuit to require cyclists to obtain parade permits, saying the rides threaten public safety by creating traffic chaos. But a federal judge dismissed the case, saying the issue should be resolved in state court.
The event, held the last Friday of each month in Manhattan, gained notoriety last summer, when police made dozens of arrests at a ride held just before the start of the Republican National Convention.
Since then, there have been about 250 arrests related to the event, including those on Friday.
As during the convention, police routinely cordon off streets with netting and make arrests during the bike rides. Bicycles are confiscated and those arrested are given desk appearance tickets.
Of all the bicyclists arrested, only one has entered a guilty plea.
Cyclists argue that since no one claims to organize the event, the issuance of permits is unnecessary. They say they do not need a formal organization because they have the same rights to streets as motorists do.
The bike rides are designed to make a statement about cyclists' rights and to protest urban areas' reliance on motor vehicles.
"I would hope that all of this comes to an end by at least the summer of 2005," Siegel said of the court proceedings.
Copyright © 2005, Newsday, Inc.
Posted by at 08:18 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Still We Ride: The Movie
NO relation to this site (except that I think I was arrested alongside the movie's maker), but an obviously worthy project: Still We Ride: The Movie. The film will premiere at the Bicycle Film Festival this year. Go look at the trailer NOW!
Posted by at 04:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 26, 2005
NYC IM: Theft from NYPD on 3/25/04 Critical Mass
Note that the City has already been told by a judge that it cannot sieze locked bicycles during and after CM unless it can prove that each specific bicycle siezed was used in the commission of a crime by somebody already under arrest. Lawsuits against the city for illegal siezure are in progress as a result of earlier lock-cutting episodes.
From NYC IM by "Critical Mass Biker"
Here is my experience at the recent critical mass.I rode around Union Square about 6:55pm to scope out what the NYPD had up its sleeves for tonight’s ride. Things had been amped up because of another lawsuit filed by the city against the critical mass. Previously a Federal Judge, who said the bike ride DOES NOT NEED A PERMIT in order to proceed, nullified that lawsuit. There are also no laws proclaiming that it is illegal to ride a bike more than 2 a breast. Once again we heard a statement coming out of a police sound system planted in Union Square North, loud enough and repetitive so that all gathered there could be properly warned about what was a blatant lie made up by the police. “Riding your bicycle in a procession without a permit is dangerous and illegal” came the recorded voice. “Anyone involved in this unlawful activity will be arrested.” So this is what the police say despite the fact that a federal judge ruled differently. This brings us to the current lawsuit filed on Friday, the day of the most recent critical mass. Since the police cannot make the bike ride illegal, they are going on the grounds of the gathering on parklands, where there is a pre-existing ordinance that claims any group of 20 or more must have a permit to assemble. Again this is a big grey area, which must be worked out in a legal arena. How can a leaderless activity of showing up to ride your bike with other people apply for a permit? Who would apply for a permit? Critical Mass is not a group it is an activity, a coordinated occurrence. Are 20 people assembled in Union square as a group? What about every day when people are hanging out in the park, or are skateboarding? Do they need a permit? What constitutes a group?
So as we all know the NYPD lies and don’t have to answer to anyone. A Federal judge says one thing, cops do another. Meanwhile the cops were out in full force, staging various pieces of equipment around Union Square such as a mobile RV command unit, flatbed truck with barricades and a converted school bus. One thing I noticed was they had orange mesh nets about 4 feet high in bundles on the corner of Union Square East and Park Ave South and on Broadway. These were used during the RNC when hundreds of bike riders were arrested on critical mass. The tactic of this is to stretch the makeshift barricade across the road and trap anyone in it. Who is blocking traffic now? So it looked like it was going to be a night for the police to use the netting tactic. In the last 2 or 3 rides that had just been attacking the ride with a phalanx of mopeds, often ramming into bike riders in order to get them to stop and then blocking off the ride in the middle with mopeds. I saw the moped division hanging out on there usual spot on Union Square East. This is the same moped division that used to facilitate and monitor the ride without being used as a battering ram for over 6 years of uneventful rides. Not anymore.
Reverend Billy and a marching band were playing in Union Square and then the band left the park heading north and stopped in front of the Petco pet supply store, on the sidewalk, on Union Square North. There were rumor that other rides were leaving from Tompkins Square and Washington Square parks, but I do not know what happened with them. Bikers filled out of the park, watched the moped division drive up the wrong way on Broadway and assemble in a straight line, waiting for the bikers to move. About 50 people headed off on their bikes down 17th street towards 5th Ave, thus starting the critical mass. I rode up ahead as quickly as I could to see what lie waiting for us, I did not want to be in the back and get rammed with a moped. As we reached 5th Ave. I saw the police trying to hurriedly put up an orange banner blocking all of 5th ave. So turning Left was not an option. Then we crossed 5th, stopping at the red light, and headed for 6th Ave. 17th was blocked with the orange net as well as a net inside a outdoor parking lot in the middle of the block which might have been an escape for the riders. So in essence we were trapped like fish in a barrel. Many people at the 6th Ave side of the street stayed with their bikes and asked the cops why they were being held. I also noticed that pedestrians unaffiliated with the ride were not being let out either. I did not know what was on the 5th Ave side, but could only assume it was another bright splotch of florescent orange.
I locked up my bicycle to scaffolding on 17th street and put my helmet on the bike. Other people were deciding what to do as more police began to mobilize on the block. One scooter cop rode past me on the sidewalk and hesitated by me as I was in the process of locking up my bicycle. Maybe he would have arrested me right there or not. Its good to see the mopeds riding on the sidewalk in such a safe manner, especially when critical mass is supposedly dangerous and illegal. Ok, so now we waited. It was clear that the people at the fence were going to be arrested. The plastic handcuffs were coming out and some people were already being fitted. Other police officers were walking up and down the block, looking for anyone holding onto a bike. Those people were escorted over to the area of other arrestees and were put through the process. One friendly doorman allowed at least 2 people to hang out in the lobby with their bikes. The police eventually went into the building and escorted those people out to be arrested. So now I had a choice. Stay with my bicycle or exit the orange fence and try to get the bike later. I opted to stay with the bike as long as I would be allowed. Anyone in the area with a video camera or taking photographs was not hassled by the police, which was an unusual change form normal when they would be asked to leave unless having proper credentials. I also saw several legal observers in identifying neon green hats being allowed to talk to people being arrested. One police sergeant asked on his walkie to get the task force in here with the saw and lock cutters. Soon 2 fire trucks, a converted NYPD police bus to take away arrestees and some emergency vehicle trucks had begun to filter into the closed block. About 40 people were being processed on the street, photographed with their bikes and being loaded onto the bus. Meanwhile 2 police officers came down the block with the saws and stopped at my bike. I said to officer McCarthy, who seemed to be calling the shots as far as bike removal. “Are you going to steal bikes?” He replied by saying, “Tell all your friends that you can have a choice. You can step forward and claim you bike and be given a summons. You will then be able to leave with your bike. Or, we will take the bikes.” I said, “But that would be theft.” He said, “ I guess that is what we’ll do than” One guy who had his bike locked up next to mine, took the summons. I just sat and watched as they used a giant saw with sparks flying to cut one link of the chain. No, you couldn’t cut the lock; you had to cut the $70.00 chain. Then my bike was tagged with a number and loaded onto a flat bed truck stacked high with all the bikes. There was one guy from Philadelphia who turned the corner and saw that his bike was taken, he was not on the ride. He was given his bike back. Why were the cops sympathetic to certain people while others were taken?
After the RNC critical mass in August, the police did a similar thing. They blocked off a side street (EAST/WEST) and people locked up their bikes. The police came and cut locks. People sued the police for taking property without linking it to an arrest. The police answered this by suing to make critical mass illegal, which was what we talked about at the beginning. That same federal judge ruled, the police CAN NOT TAKE BIKES without being associated to an arrest. So once again the police violated a federal order and took property. This has been one of the only things we have been able to win on in the legal arena.
So here we are again. Critical mass is being attacked more harshly with every ride without legal grounds for arrest. The police do not want to work with the citizens of New York. I for one am not against the NYPD, I just want to participate in an event that promotes bike riding that has been happening in New York for 6 years without a problem and in over 400 cities across the planet.
Oh yeah and I want my stolen property back.
If you too had a bike taken and not arrested on 17th St, contact me:
criticalmassbiker (at) mac.com
Posted by at 08:48 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
NYC IM: March CM photos online
Posted by at 08:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
City's CM complaint now online
The lawsuit filed by the City against Times-Up and several of its members by name is now online; check out a PDF here
Posted by at 07:03 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
NYC IM : 37 Arrests for "Criminal Mass" Bike Activity
From NYC Indymedia
By NYBKR
I was arrested for riding my bike on the streets of NYC last night. I did nothing illegal; obeying all traffic laws and stopping for red lights. The "Powers-That-Be" A.K.A. Bloomberg and Kelly have decided to crack down on cyclists by arresting them and confiscating their bikes month after month. They hope that by doing so in the winter months when numbers are low they can break us before the good weather and massive numbers return. This is a terrible waste of scarce resources and affects every New Yorker, not just bicyclists.
There were 37 arrests last night. All arrestees I spoke with plan to fight this in court. We need your support in many ways:
1. Continue to ride so that we may return CM to a fun, safe event for all.
2. Support the upcoming benefit on April 9. This is specifically for defending CM arrestees; www.bicycledefensefund.org.
3. This is an election year let your elected representatives know how you feel; Contact your local city council member and the Mayor through this link: www.nyccouncil.info/constituent/contact_member.cfm
4. Write letters to editors and call local newsdesks demanding that they report on the actions being taken by the City against cyclists.New York Times contact info:
www.nytimes.com/ref/membercenter/help/infoservdirectory.html
Ride On,
If you're not outraged, then you're not paying attention.
Posted by at 04:29 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
CM March 2005 photos at UntitledName
New photos (March 2005 arrests) by Will at UntitledName here.
Posted by at 04:19 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
NYC Indymedia roundup
There's a roundup of Indymedia coverage, including photos from fredaskew, here.
Posted by at 10:59 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 25, 2005
NYTimes: MANHATTAN: CITY WANTS TO LIMIT BIKE PROTEST
The city is seeking to limit the monthly Critical Mass protest ride through Manhattan by requiring permits for the ride and for the use of the group's main staging area, Union Square. Critical Mass rides, held on the last Friday evening of each month, advocate nonpolluting forms of transportation. On Tuesday, city summonses were given to four Critical Mass participants, directing them to answer a city complaint seeking permits for the rides and for the use of Union Square. The complaint also seeks an order banning participants from advertising the ride. A lawyer representing Critical Mass, Norman Siegel, said it would be unconstitutional to prevent the group from advertising its activities. But a lawyer for the city, Robin Binder, said the group did not have the "right to advertise an unlawful activity."Colin Moynihan (NYT)
Posted by at 08:27 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Newsday: City again seeks to require permits for monthly bike ride
NEW YORK (AP) _ The city has filed a complaint seeking to require permits for a monthly bicycle rally through Manhattan that typically brings automobile traffic to a standstill.Summonses were issued Tuesday to four participants in the Critical Mass ride, ordering them to respond to the complaint, The New York Times reported in Friday editions.
The city wants to require permits for use of city streets and of Union Square, the rally's starting point, and to bar participants from publicizing the ride.The event _ held the last Friday of each month in Manhattan _ gained notoriety last summer, when police made dozens of arrests at a ride held several days before the start of the Republican National Convention.
Last December, the city filed a lawsuit to require cyclists to obtain parade permits, saying the rides threaten public safety by creating traffic chaos. But a federal judge dismissed the case, saying the issue should be resolved in state court.
Cyclists argue that since no one claims to organize the event, the issuance of permits is unnecessary. They say they do not need a formal organization because they have the same rights to streets as motorists do.
The bike rides are designed to make a statement about cyclists' rights and to protest urban areas' reliance on motor vehicles.
Posted by at 08:23 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
March 24, 2005
NYC IM : The NYC District Attorney Makes the Campaign Against Critical Mass Personal
From BombsAndShields / NYC Indymedia
By Thaddeus
New York, New York - The New York City District Attorney has taken legal action against Time’s Up organizers in an attempt to stop the monthly Critical Mass bicycle rides and limit what the group is allowed to say. On Wednesday an injunction was filed against the group as well as specific individuals Bill Dipaola, Brandon Neubauer, Leah Rorvig, and Matthew Roth. If the injunction is granted by the state court it will be illegal for any of the named individuals, members of Time’s Up, or "all those acting in concert with" them to promote Critical Mass. Lawyers for the group plan to file a response asking that the city’s request for an injunction be denied.If Time’s Up’s lawyers fail to halt the injunction, those named would be barred from speaking to the media about Critical Mass or even distribute flyers with the rides time and date. Those who violate the order risk "contempt of court" charges and would be subject to punishment under state law of two possible sentences: a fine of up to $1,000 or a jail sentence of up to thirty or both. “This is really a freedom of speech issue” says Bill Dipaola. “The city is telling us what we are allowed to say and where we are allowed to assemble.”
Last October the city attempted to obtain an injunction against “Critical Mass” but because Critical Mass is an event and not a group, and because the police allowed the ride to occur for so many years without permits, U.S. District Court Judge William Pauley III turned down their request. He went on to say “To issue an injunction on such a gossamer thread would stretch this court’s jurisdiction beyond the limited elasticity of [the law].” Judge Pauley also ordered the NYPD to halt its practice of cutting locks and confiscating bicycles on public sidewalks.
Favorable court rulings have not brought any changes to the manner in which the NYPD has been treating cyclists. Bikes locked to public and private property were cut in plain view of Time’s Up’s attorney Norman Siegel following the Halloween Critical Mass ride and police have continued to chase and arrest riders costing the city tens of thousands of dollars in police expenditures over the past seven months according to Time’s Up.
One of the numerous un-official Critical Mass websites (there are no official websites) calls the event, which takes place in over 400 locations around the world, “an unorganized coincidence” and “a ride without leaders.” According to Time’s Up the route is determined by the riders as they go, and is not preplanned.
New York City Critical Mass rides have occurred monthly without significant incident and often with the co-operation and assistance of the police since 1998. The city has been anything but co-operative with riders since last Augusts regularly scheduled ride swelled to 10,000 participants on the eve of the Republican National Convention. The police department employed hundreds of officers, a brand new fleet of un-marked scooters, a new sound truck, a blimp and at least one helicopter to assist in arrests of 264 cyclists on that ride.
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March 16, 2005
Critical Mass trailer
Just came across this pretty decent Critical Mass trailer at the site for a new movie, Don't Shoot the Messengers, about messing in Toronto.
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March 02, 2005
The Villager: 14 arrested, as Critical Mass crackdown continues
From The Villager
By Jefferson Siegel
As they have every month for eight years, bike riders from around the city and out of town gathered in the north plaza of Union Sq. Park last Friday night for the Critical Mass group bicycle ride.Dave Bonon, a member of the Danbury Independent Media Center, came from Connecticut. On his backpack hung two license-plate style signs reading “Bicycling A Quiet Statement Against Oil Wars” and “True Automobile.” Eric Ferguson from Croton-on-Hudson drew attention with his replica of a “Pennyfarthing” bicycle with a huge front wheel and a tiny rear wheel.
Police handed out fliers stating “No permit has been issued for a bicycle procession. If you choose to ride in a procession this evening, you will be arrested and your bicycle will be seized.” However, a court ruling last December by a federal judge denied the city’s request for an injunction barring the monthly rides from occurring without a permit.
When the ride started just after 7:30 p.m., over 100 bicyclists pedaled out of the northwest corner of the park, heading west on 17th St. But the ride was promptly cut short one block later at Fifth Ave. Six riders, including a legal observer for the National Lawyers Guild, were arrested. They were escorted onto the sidewalk, where they were handcuffed, photographed and loaded into a police van. Another police truck removed their bicycles.
Civil rights attorney Norman Siegel had walked over from Union Sq. in time to witness the arrests. When asked about the legality of detaining a legal observer, he said, “They can’t arrest anyone. These arrests are illegal.”
An hour later another eight riders who had managed to continue on were arrested at 26th St. and Broadway.
One of the first to be arrested was West Village resident Madeline Nelson. The next day she recounted her ordeal. “At the point where I left Union Sq., it was a pretty thin stream of people. Police vans came, turning onto 17th St. pretty quickly. It almost felt like we were riding single file because these police vehicles were taking up the road. I got to the corner of Fifth Ave., looked across the street, saw, ‘Oh, people are getting arrested’ and I turned onto Fifth Ave.,” she said.
Nelson had been riding alone when a policeman ran in her direction and placed her under arrest. Along with the other five arrested cyclists, she was taken to the Ninth Precinct and held for three and a half hours.
When all 14 arrested cyclists were released at 11:30 p.m., Gideon Oliver, a National Lawyers Guild legal observer who has observed the rides since last August’s Republican Convention, was waiting for them. The next day, commenting on the arrests, he said, “What concerned me about last night was that the Police Department seems to be shifting their tactics and seems to be chasing the rides rather than facilitating them, which is obviously incredibly dangerous.”
Paul J. Browne, the Police Department’s deputy commissioner for public information, responded: “We’ve attempted, but were rebuffed, when we tried to escort them. Meet, have a route and escort it. Since then we’ve just asked people to observe the traffic laws. If they do they’re not arrested; if they break them, they are.”
The arrested cyclists were charged with parading without a license and disorderly conduct and were issued desk appearance tickets. A court date is scheduled for March 22.
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