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Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut.
-- Ernest Hemingway
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OK, so, if you're not from the San Francisco Bay Area, you
may not know about the Gilman St. Project. It's the
seminal club around here for the punk resurgence of the
late 80's/early 90's. Hell, it's where GREEN DAY started!
Woo-hoo! Anyways, it's in trouble.
I know, you're probably thinking, "Who the fuck cares? Another stupid club
comes and goes." Or maybe you're like Flesh, and you're so Old Skool Punk that
you don't think any club since the Ingrown Asshair in 1978 is worth even
pissing on. [Flesh rebuts: "I not only helped raise money for [Gilman], I
was one of the very first people through the goddamn door."]
Well, what makes Gilman important is that it's a) member-owned and -run, b)
cheap and c) all ages. The people who wanted to hear music in Berkeley, but
didn't have a venue, made one themselves, and they've kept it open through
constant adversity, playing some pretty decent music in the process. It's
another cool example of people making the shit they like happen for themselves
and for others. It's like Free Software, or Burning Man, or whatever. And
that's why it's worth saving.
Anyways, Gilman's in trouble with the City of Berkeley. Apparently the area
they're located in -- a crappy industrial slum -- is zoned for
"re-development", and the City and some of the high-teck businesses moving in
are unhappy about having a bunch of punx walking around their new office parks
on the way to the shows. So, they're trying to get the permit for Gilman
revoked.
The Gilman St. site has a petition you can sign to tell the big bastards to
keep their hands off small, non-profit venues. You should go do it, even if
you could give a rat's ass about punk music or Berkeley or whatever. Just go
sign the fucking petition, eh? SIGN IT!!!!!! OK? OK.
Check it out yourself
runcible@pigdog.org
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