Drumbeat Still Out There

Last week's Wednesday Drum Circle featured increase police pressure with police arriving at dusk, several hours before the 10 PM “noise curfew” and dispersing people, according to participants reports. Supporters may want to keep an eye on today's Drum Circle as there seems seems to be a significant rise in both ticketing and violence against the homeless and street community downtown by police action.

Police also ticketed Eve—the legless woman— last week at the Drum Circle for “blocking the path”, as she described it. Eve also described a subsequent arrest and grim weekend in jail when I ran into her Monday, claiming she was beaten and raped in jail by female guards.

She and two other witnesses also described a subsequent bust by Officer Winston on Monday afternoon in front of New Leaf where he reportedly roughed up a guy for “resisting arrest” in a “sitting on the edge of a cement flower planter” ticket.

On Tuesday Baltimore, a hard-core street regular downtown, reported a second arrest and night in jail, by the same Officer Winston for the same “crime” at the same location.

“Big Drum” Brent reported being ticketed by...Winston...for “Unreasonably Disturbing Noise”[UDN] during the day on complaint from 4th floor law office of Atack and Penrose above Borders, even after he'd stopped playing Saturday May 29th] An interesting interchange between Brent and the woman who may be his nemesis can be found at
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/04/28/18646028.php?show_comments=1#18648709 .

Tamorac, the Pacific Avenue drummer, has reported getting another UDN ticket from a woman above Borders, even after agreeing to “move on”--playing well before 10 PM.

The Street Performers Guild meets Friday June 11th at 5 PM in Louden Nelson Center in Room #7. Performers and supporters welcome. Some plan to encourage regular documentation of police misuse of the Downtown Ordinances; others want to see a legal support brief for those already cited and perhaps an Injunction against the misuse of the laws—as well as other strategies for solidarity. There is talk of restoring the Open Mike inspired by the earlier Street Performers Guild organizing of the 1980's and 1990's.

I've made some suggestions on recent “police procedures” and how to respond to these MC 9.36 citations at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/05/27/18649032.php?show_comments=1#18649648

Robert Facer and I go to trial myself for singing “Downtown” with homeless lyrics on July 20th in Dept. 10.

HUFF (Homeless United for Friendship & Freedom) meets today at 10:30 AM at the Sub Rose Cafe. Some activists are planning a March of the Penguins at 11:30 AM—where they will be registered voters on the Pacific Avenue sidewalk. Some may venture into the “forbidden zones” (tabling within 10' of a Penguin statue) and risk citation or arrest for their presumption. The Penguinistas will also be continuing the poll began by HUFFsters the week before at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/05/31/18649403.php

If anyone has any news on Bob Noxious's sometime-Nightly Video Extravaganzas (street videos shown against buildings—such as the back of the Del Mar Theater from the New Leaf Parking Lot), please post.

Defending the rights of Drum Circle participants and their audience defends the rights of all of us. At their new location, claims of UDN are increasingly absurd. Please post reports or contact my Thursday night radio show at 831-427-3772 with reports. The Sub Rose Cafe at 703 Pacfic Ave. also has a notebook for recording police abuse incidents. Reports involving street performers will be of interest to those attending the Friday evening Street Performers Guild meeting.