1955 Chuck Berry invents rock and roll.

1956 Many cities ban rock and roll after police bust a show where they "feared the crowd might become uncontrollable...induced by the provocative rhythms of an all [Black] band.”

2020 Somerville reopens restaurants with INDOOR dining and reopens INDOOR gyms but bans OUTDOOR music saying it might make crowds uncontrollable.

Meanwhile Cambridge next door has safe and tiny performances like a busker outside small restaurant patios. All small business managers in the state are required to prevent lines and gathering. #Musicians are not superpredators. Superspreader events happen inside more than outside.

#Chuckberry is not scary!

#Decriminalize outdoor music

Improve safety enforcement at large indoor businesses if you want to look tough on corona, and save lives.

Let musicians work outside for 1 month before the long winter.

We do not believe this decision was made with racist intentions. It looks tough on corona, but we don't believe it's safer. It looks like systemic racism, but we don't believe that was the intention. Somerville gave an incredible amount of support to The Jungle, including cash to keep our community music club open, AFTER seeing that musicians performing here are disproportionately Black. How many other cities have done that? Somerville officials have been amazingly helpful to us until last week when we've been unable to reach them regarding their plans to open indoor gyms before outdoor music. That's understandable given that they have the very difficult and more important work of opening schools in a pandemic. When it came time to make a decision between gyms and outdoor music, maybe they were modeling average yoga classes vs outdoor music festivals. We get it, The Jungle is open, we don't deserve more of a voice as a restaurant or venue, but musicians only have 1 month to play before it's too cold outside. No new venues or gathering spaces, just let musicians play where people are already eating at patios. Hold constant the occupancy and distancing rules, adding music to outdoor patios is safer than opening indoor gyms.

This is only about giving musicians a chance to work safely outside for one month before an even longer shutdown. The Jungle is just trying to provide a safe outdoor space for music and not trying to make money this year, definitely not make money off musicians who have this the hardest. For the rest of 2020 every day that we have a #musician we will pay them 50% of food sales, and donate the other 50% to the Southern Poverty Law Center. We are fortunate that Somerville has good intentions and is fast to improve, #SPLC works for justice where that is not the case and teaches tolerance to children.