Matthew Christian @matthew-christian - Tumblr Blog

Zoom Balloons in the 14th Street Sixth Avenue Tunnel

On our way back from Harlem, Matthew and I stopped to pick up some cheese at the Westside Market on…

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Cheerios, and how I was depicted

I’ve gotten out of the habit of posting busking updates — there aren’t enough hours in the day…

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Charges changed

During my July 25th arrest, I was given multiple reasons to leave the station, including “performing without a permit” and “performing on the platform.” Fortunately, both of these things are specifically permitted by the MTA Rules of Conduct. Oops! One…

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#"Justice" system #Desk Appearance Ticket #Let&039;s just make some stuff up and call it a day!#NYPD legal dept

Police and police reform: How I didn't get shot

You might have noticed that we talk a lot about the police around here. As a matter of fact, we’ve even been wrongfully arrested a few times; and we wish to heck that the police would do things differently. So, many people conclude, we must also be aninhe…

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#83rd Precinct #Bushwick #Bushwick shooting #New Jim Crow #NYPD #police disrespect #police homophobia #police obscenity #police reform #shooting #social activism #we&039;re on your side

BuskNY en español

El metro de Nueva York es un sitio para compartir no solamente arte, sino cultura también. Eso se nota tanto en el gran numero de idiomas que se oye en cada andén como en la diversidad de tradiciones musicales, incluso varios grupos mexicanos y andinos.

P…

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#Andean music NYC #arresto de mùsicos Nueva York #arresto de músicos NYC #arte en pùblico #citación por tocar música #derechos civiles de músicos #grupo andino metro #mùsica en la MTA #Música andina #Música andina NYC #música en Nueva York #Música mexicana NYC #Mexican music NYC #panpipe NYC #summons por tocar música #zampoña Nueva York #zampoña NYC

8/22: Progress in the making

BuskNY would like to congratulate the New York City Council for doing the right thing today, and express thanks to everyone who’s worked to advocate for the decision that was made. New York City will now have a police inspector, as well as an end to the…

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#New York City Council #New York City Police Department #NYPD #Stop and Frisk

8/21: Big city bubbles

Popped up for air at Union Square with Milo this week, and who was there but this guy:

I’ll be…

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#blowing bubbles #bubble love #Busking #street art #street performance

8/20: How I was(n't) robbed

Today was toasty below-ground, but I had an excellent day out. (And that’s welcome news, given my…

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#Busking #crime #MTA #NYC busking #NYC crime #NYC safety #virtues of the metropolis

8/17: BuskNY's back in town!

BuskNY’s back!

The last few days have been busy, both with busking and because I’ve taken on a commitment as the volunteer ESL instructor for a summer after-school program. That said, I’m still finding time to busk and to do community outreach. And we’re…

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#blocking traffic #Busking #jazz saxophone #MTA busking #MTA music #NYC busking #police harassment #social justice

8/5: State of the busk

I’m taking off tomorrow morning for a week in Vermont. So, it’s a good moment to look at what we’ve done and learned so far this summer:

We’ve gotten the website and associated Twitter and Facebookpages up and running, with decent visibility and traffic.…

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#BuskNY #Music is Legal

8/3: Parrots, buckets, and my burgeoning love for the NYPD

Today, Milo and I spent a few hours doing outreach. What I’m learning is that community organizing…

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#59th St #bucket drumming #classical violin #good cop indeed #Kikkoman #Music is Legal #NYPD #parrot #Union Square

8/1: Courtesy, professionalism, respect

So, two li’l stories from today:

1. While I was playing at Metropolitan Ave., a cop walked the length of the platform to my spot. No panic — cops there always seem well-trained on the rules. But then he turned just as he got to my spot — uh-oh — and heck,…

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#Doin&039; it right #Metropolitan Ave #Museum of Natural History #NYPD

7/31: Rules pamphlets located

The saga is over! An official pamphlet of the MTA Rules of Conduct can be obtained in Brooklyn at…

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#MTA Rules of Conduct #red tape #Summons #Transit Adjudication Bureau

7/30: Rules pamphlets: Update

Two weeks ago, I wrote a post on how to request an MTA rules pamphlet. This was important to be…

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#Catch-22 #MTA #MTA Rules of Conduct #NYPD #transit police

7/30: Voice from the blogs: our theoretical protection

One online commenter, writing at Norman LeBrecht’s blog Slipped Disc, had this to say :

“The big problem here is that the NYPD is NOT enforcing the law. In fact the law protects the violinist’s actions. He is being intimidated for no real reason. I have…

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#civil rights #NYPD #police misconduct #social activism

7/29: How to sue for a wrongful summons

I emailed back and forth recently with a prominent arts advocate. He had big news: if you receive a wrongful summons, you can go ahead and sue for it.

I followed up on this with Galluzzo & Johnson, and it was confirmed that a wrongful summons is…

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#blocking traffic #busking lawsuit #MTA rules #subway performers #Summons

7/28: What I learned yesterday

Yesterday brought us an article in Gothamist, a flurry of discussion on Twitter and Facebook, and thousands of views between here and YouTube. Here’s what I learned:

1. New Yorkers love their music, and they want their musicians protected. Response to the…

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#Gothamist #Musician #New York City #NYC music #social activism #social justice

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Matthew Christian