Artists Give Chicago Ultimatum

2009 Contact: Chris Drew * 773/561-7676 * umcac@art-teez.org

Chicago Artists from the Free Speech Artists' Movement have given the City of Chicago an ultimatum to exempt artists from the peddlers license or go to Federal Court over the artists' First Amendment right to sell their art on the public sidewalks and in the parks of Chicago. The artists of the Free Speech Artists' Movement (Free S.A.M.) say the City writes broad laws that impact their speech rights enormously claiming to the court that these laws are needed to control traffic on sidewalks. The artists point out First Amendment case law demands narrow laws whenever writing laws that limit First Amendment protected speech. Free S.A.M. artists claim their art is protected speech. They are willing to fight for their rights.

In Chicago homeless persons have won the right to panhandle a dollar in the Loop based on our First Amendment right to free speech. But a homeless person who is an artist can't ask you for the same dollar for your portrait on a paper plate. Street artists are criminalized in Chicago and their rights are legislated away. World famous, Lee Godi, who made her mark selling her paintings around the steps of the Art Institute, under today's laws, would be jailed and would never be able to become known.

Art Fairs, neighborhood Festivals and especially the closed gallery scenes are not viable alternatives to the right to sell your art on the street. The ability to meet directly with your audience on a daily basis in good weather without fees, deadlines or applications is what many artists need to advance to the next level. With this freedom for artists to sell and be seen in public, open-air art markets with poetry and song could develop in Chicago. Tourists and more artists would be attracted to Chicago.

The Free Speech Artists' Movement is producing the Art Patch Project to use the art of a growing number of Chicago based artists to educate the public about artists rights to sell art openly. Artists are giving art patches way in locations wherever art sales are prohibited in public. Art patch activist, C. Drew expects to build the Art Patch Project for as many years as it takes to change Chicago – to make it friendly to artists.

The first exhibit of art patches is at the annual “T-shirt Art Harvest Festival”, September 25-27, at the American Indian Center, 1630 W. Wilson. “This exhibit will grow and these Art Patches will travel the world before they rest,” this community art organizer boasts. “Because,”he says, “the patches promote each artist and fight for artists' rights at the same time.” Interested artists should visit art-teez.org/free-speech.htm for more info and to submit their art.

Free S.A.M. is win-win-win. The public, artists and the City win because to be the artist magnet that will truly make Chicago able to compete with other world class cities it must showcase its local artists and be a friendly place for artists to locate. Study after study show increased art activity strengthens the local economy. In this time of joblessness artists and the public need their right to sell their speech in public. Our freedom is a jobs program. Give us our freedom to sell our speech/art or we will sue.

A copy of this press release has been e-mailed to all 50 Chicago City Aldermen with a request for them to propose and pass legislation to exempt all Chicago artists from the peddlers license requirement or expect a law suit soon to follow.

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Uptown Multi-Cultural Art Center (UM-CAC). E-mail umcac@art-teez.org Ph.773/561-7676