Last year, a federal court upheld that New York City can limit the number of artists who are allowed to sell work in public places like Battery Park and Union Sauare. A group of activists are fighting that decision, and have asked the Supreme Court to hear their case, but the city is vying to shut their petition down.
The plaintiffs’ case rests on the idea that the anti-artist court decision is inconsistent with other courts’ rulings on similar matters, but the city argues otherwise. “It is beyond dispute that neither the United States nor the State Constitutions guarantee a person the right ‘to communicate one’s views at all times and places and in any manner that may be desired,” reads a portion of the city’s brief. “‘While ample alternatives must be available, speakers are not guaranteed ‘access to every or even the best channels or locations for their expression.”
The whole saga raises the question: was Banksy’s sidewalk art sale in October every bit as illegal as his street work?
This evening, ANIMAL is teaming up with advocacy group Stamp Stampede to raise awareness about Citizens United, one of the most obscene Supreme Court rulings ever handed down by old people in robes. We'll do this by taking a projector-equipped van around the city, putting enormous images like the one…
DOMA's demise meant the end of a long legal battle for one New York City-based binational couple. Sean Brooks and his Columbian-native husband Steven filed for a green card for Steven in 2011, after their marriage at City Hall in New York City, but their request was not approved as…
The Bloomberg administration took its first step this week in attempting to overturn the federal court decision that ruled stop-and-frisk unconstitutional, filing a request that would halt the court's mandated reforms until the city can appeal the case. Attorney Michael Cardozo wrote that the city was requesting the delay--officially known as…