Forwarded Message:

Subject: Something's Happening Here...
Date: Wed, 05 Mar 2003 12:00:08 -0500

Hey everybody.

Just when you thought it was safe to speak your mind:


Peace T-shirt leads to man's arrest

Refused to remove anti-war shirt

March 4 -- Roger and Stephen Downs had these shirts made at Crossgates Mall,
but Stephen Downs was arrested when he refused to take his off and leave the
mall. Lindsay Cohen reports.

GUILDERLAND, N.Y., March 4 - A Selkirk man says he was arrested Monday for
expressing his objection to possible war with Iraq at Crossgates Mall. He says
all he did was wear a T-shirt bearing a message of peace, which he actually
purchased in the mall.

By Lindsay Cohen


STEPHEN DOWNS AND his son, Roger Downs, each had a pro-peace shirt made
Monday night. One shirt simply said "Let Inspections Work" on one side and "No
War With Iraq" on the other. The other shirt said "Give Peace A Chance" on the
front and "Peace On Earth" on the back. The men paid about $23 for each of the
shirts and then wore them in the mall.
"We were just shopping. We were wearing these T-shirts. We weren't handing
out leaflets, we weren't saying anything," Roger Downs recalled.
They may not have been saying anything, but they were creating enough of a
disturbance to one employee, who called security.
Security asked Downs and his son to remove their shirts. Roger Downs
complied, but when Stephen Downs wouldn't, he was told to leave the mall. When
he refused, he was arrested.
"This struck me as a powerful way of expressing myself. I wanted to do
something peaceful," he said.
Roger Downs says he is proud of his father.
"I'm impressed that he's refused to have his civil rights violated," Roger
Downs said.
New York Civil Liberties Union President Stephen Gottlieb says he can't
believe the peaceful T-shirts could lead to Downs' arrest.
"We believe, most of us, in the Bill of Rights, and we believe that
protects the freedom to speak. Well, if there's a freedom of speech, where do we
get to do it?" Gottlieb asked.
Gottlieb says he believes there is a law protecting peoples' rights to free
speech, even in shopping malls.
Guilderland police say they arrested Downs because he refused to leave
private property. That, they say, is trespassing.
Representatives for Crossgates did not return calls for comment Tuesday.
Signs posted at entrances to the mall say that "wearing of apparel...
likely to provoke disturbances... is prohibited" at the mall.


peace,

Lawrence


______________________________________________

"The real Axis of Evil in America is the genius of our marketing and the
gullibility of our people."

Bill Maher
Visit Lawrence's website! All the info, half the calories: www.geocities.com/lcbullock

Gerry, it IS amazing how far back we can go in the blink of an eye (or the donning of a shirt). See the "Freedom of Speech" thread for more about this...our own Wyld<img src="http://www.arlo.net/ubb/smilies/peace.gif" width=16 height=16><img src="http://www.arlo.net/ubb/smilies/angel.gif" width=25 height=20> (of course) got involved.

Anyone in the Albany NY area... Sunday, noontime, another gathering of people wearing peace tee-shirts at Crossgates Mall... I think I may have a shirt made that quotes the first amendment!

Not sure if I'll actually get to this protest, because I'm going to the Arlo show in Ithaca on Saturday nite. I'll decide later today about whether I'll drive home early Sunday to make it to the rally, or if I'll hang in Ithaca for a while. (I'm leaning toward protest, tho - anyone else who is at the show and wants to caravan to Albany, let me know!)

Sorry Wyld, I didn't read your post before I sent mine. But I should have known this infringement on our civil rights might have been addressed already. A friend from CA sent me the post that I submitted. Are we sliding back to those pre-civil rights days? Ceashel, I was not much more than a toddler in the late sixties so I didn't really experience what went on and what had to be accomplished to try to fix these types of infringements or Incongruities of the Social Structure,as I call them.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Gerry:

Sorry Wyld, I didn't read your post before I sent mine. But I should have known this infringement on our civil rights might have been addressed already. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

... no problem Gerry! and Welcome to Blunderland! I figger it's better to have more posts and threads about a topic, than to just assume that it's being handled, and take the chance that nothing will be done! It's also really good to hear that a relatively small action here in upstate NY is getting national and international attention!

Keep on keeping on!

I saw that on our news. Funny how they will arrest folks for silly stuff like that & let rapists & murderers go... <img src="http://www.arlo.net/ubb/smilies/peace.gif" width=16 height=16>