Printer's Ball Busted By Police; Chicago Blogosphere Wigs Out

Keidra Chaney, July 25, 2007

A couple of years ago The Poetry Foundation decided to use their newly acquired wealth to kick off a novel event, The Printers’ Ball: a celebration of Chicago’s independent publishing scene, a local scene that was unusually active, considering the state of independent publishing nationwide. The first year was a funky little affair in the South Loop at the Hothouse (RIP) – there was a hour-long wait to get in, and was wall-to-wall people rummaging through stacks of Stop Smiling and Banana King; even with all the scavenging for ‘zines, there was still a “geek friendly” vibe. Hip enough for the cool kids but low-key enough for word nerds.

The second year's event was at the Double Door, so it was way more of a “hipster” vibe. Like Liz Armstrong on the "guest-list" hipster. It wasn't bad, just very different. I remember seeing a couple of bookish people stumble their way out as I came in, looking a bit dazed by the whole set-up. Overall the event was so dark, so loud and so hard to browse the evening, ended up being a bit of a disappointment. The first year, as frantic as it was, introduced some local publications to some new audiences. The second time it was "a cool free thing with some bands at the Double Door" as some guy described it on the phone to his friend. I still saw a lot of people come out with armfuls of ‘zines and chapbooks, but I saw way more people standing around drinking PBR, like any other night at the Double Door.

This year’s event was the culminating event was a month-long series celebrating indie publishing in Chicago. It was held at Zhou B. Art Center in Bridgeport. As a long-time supporter of the scene, I made plans to attend, but as a black woman who grew up in Chicago, the idea of going to Bridgeport by myself  at night gave me pause. Yes it’s 2007, and its been 10 years since the Lenard Clark beating, but gentrified though the neighborhood has become, it’s still a place where I don’t feel particularly welcome.

So to make a long story short, I decided not to go, and instead left town for the weekend for a short vacation, figuring I’d hear a few brief, non-eventful recaps on the blogosphere here and there.

Boy was I wrong.

On Monday, a friend alerted me to a post by (former Third Coast Press writer) C.J. Laity on ChicagoPoetry.com who breathlessly reports that the event was raided by the police, a scene which Laity likens to “a scene out of Robocop.”

a small army, in ominous black jumpsuits with CHICAGO POLICE in big white letters across their chests, arm the exits as hundreds of literate citizens file out into the night.  Thus ends this year's Printers Ball, which took who knows how long to plan and which apparently offended the authorities by putting some literature into its party. One has to wonder what has gone wrong with the City of Chicago at times like this. Does this city simply have too many narcs? Do these roughnecks have to keep busy to justify their paychecks? Are the Chicago Police that daft that they can't tell a book giveaway from a rave? Is this a sign of intellectual cleansing in preparation for the Olympics? Or perhaps there is a legitimate concern like a bomb threat but we the people are too ignorant to have it explained to us.

Not too long after, Chicagoist.com (full disclosure: I occasionally write for them) does its own reporting on the event … aaaand it gets a bit personal.

Over the years, Laity has used his website not only an engine to promote the happenings in Chicago's thriving poetry community, but as an occasional bully pulpit to spread gossip, wage personal vendettas against people he feels have crossed him, or wage the little territorial battles that soured us on the poetry scene years ago. Bottom line, if there is a grain of truth to any of the reasons the cops came knocking, then they were right to do their job, and the bad apples in this instance were not the cops.

Avant/Chicago puts in their two cents, as do a few attendees.

In short, the raid proves it’s definitely a touch-and-go time for Chicago’s artists and creatives looking to do some ground-up community building without fear of getting busting by the cops. On the upside, though, it was a great day for Chicago’s online “citizen journalists” since there was actually something of interest to report about, and the major dailies didn’t seem to pick up the slack. I only wish I had been there.

Finally, I think the lesson to be learned from this is it’s time for the Poetry Foundation to invest some of their cash into hiring a full-time event planner that has some experience with Chicago liquor licenses. For reals.

edited to add:  My bad, The Sun Times did actually cover this story. All part of their new "we're not the Tribune" editorial vision, I'm sure. Props to them.

Comments

[Avant/Chicago]

For me the main thing of all this is that the cops are focusing in on creative events and letting others pass. (like former events at the Zhou Center sponsored by city)(or a thousands keg parties in Lakeview and LP) With the ordinance floated for extreme regualtions on parties - like i said in my post on A/C - i think this (and other busts) was sort of a response to all the people showing up a city hall. Sadly i think it is a war - and i am a peaceful dude - so the best way to fight it is prevention and doing the red tape work - b/c the cops will when any other way!

[TDiddy]

i love Robocop

[ChicagoPoetry]

Thank you for linking to the Sun Times article. I did not know that existed. The three floors of the gallery were actually holding three different events. The third floor was posting a widely publicized "self-portrait" exhibit. The first floor was where the Printers Ball was giving away books. If the problems were happening on the 2nd and 3rd floors, it would have been nice if the cops could have shut this activity down without having to kick everyone out of the safe first floor in the process. I think it was more of a danger to herd everyone out into their cars, in the middle of their drinking, when perhaps they assumed they had a few hours to get their grip, than letting them mingle around in a gallery with tight stairways. Also, I am under the assumption that it was an off duty cop who CARDED me at the door and then stamped my hand with an 8 so that I may drink. Was this being done because there WASN'T drinking going on inside? Finally, as I've said in some other more hostile posts, the Chicagoist's comments about my history in Chicago amount to an unfair and rather personal assessment of two-sided struggles that I have had to endure over the years caused by a little band of poets constantly slandering me. They accuse me of gossip yet that is all they do, gossip about me. Notice the hostile conversation doesn't originate with me, nor did it originate with me during all these alleged vendettas during which I am made out to be a "bully" or a Darth Vader with a dark side. Gee, here's an idea, if you don't want to get your a** poetically slapped, stop f***ing with people.