Craftspeople face arrest, harassment on OFW
By Della
Franco
We thought that when Bill
Rosendahl became the Councilman he would represent the needs of the people of
the Venice Boardwalk; the artists supported him; they believed in him.
Unfortunately for all concerned, they and their families are being let down.
While Rosendahl was stating to the press
that there were no problems enforcing the new ordinance, he did not witness the
tears of the craftspeople who simply did not understand how their livelihood was
suddenly swept away from them. These people who have for years attracted
hundreds of thousands of tourists, bringing in huge revenue to Venice Beach are
suddenly denied the right to work!
This
is because the City Council refused to enforce the original long-standing
agreement that factory-made goods were not allowed to be sold on the west side
of the boardwalk. Instead of adhering to this simple rule, the City ignored for
too long the obvious influx of these goods and then responded to the problem by
enforcing unfair regulations, ordinances and lotteries.
Craftspeople fail to comprehend how
handmade jewelry (amongst other handmade crafts) is now forbidden to be sold?
What is the difference between a painting hanging on a wall and a piece of
jewelry hanging from ones neck? How does one distinguish between the usefulness
of a button, bumper-sticker or a ring? It is obvious that this ordinance needs
to be amended, or better still, abolished! The craftspeople NEED to be
protected.
If someone makes their craft
on the spot, it is an artistic expression and personal exchange with the
consumer. Originally all artists, painters, craftspeople were to be actively
working on their crafts and then what is handmade becomes obvious. It is
ludicrous to ignore this standard and instead heavily regulate a supposedly
“free speech and expression zone.”
When tourists experience Venice as a
place where people work with their hands (regardless of what it is they make)
this creates a unique cultural atmosphere which Venice has always been famous
for. Even the residents do not want this taken
away.
What a shameful mess the
Ordinance has created. Police harassment grows every day. There are more police
than artists these days. Now we have mothers handcuffed in front of their
children and peaceful activists dragged off to jail. Artists are being made into
criminals!!
The tension on Venice
Beach is so thick that even the tourist aren't frequenting as they used to. So
everyone is suffering, including the remaining artists and local store owners.
The spirit of Venice Beach is being stifled and we need to take action in order
to prevent further oppression and restrictions. Please help by calling the City
Council at 311 and/or signing the petition at
<www.petitiononline.com>.
Posted: Tue - August 1, 2006 at 02:24 PM