1/14/89 For Immediate Release: A.R.T.I.S.T. (Artist s Response To Illegal State Tactics) President Robert Lederman was arrested in front of City Hall today during the Mayor s State of the City speech. Lederman had used a piece of chalk to write, GIULIANI =POLICE STATE on the street near Giuliani s parked white sports utility vehicle. He was immediately surrounded by police, arrested and dragged into the basement of City Hall where he watched the Mayor s speech on a T.V. monitor while surrounded by police officers. Police officials immediately washed the chalk off of the street near Giuliani s vehicle. Lederman was held for three hours at the First Precinct and charged with Defacement of Property. While in custody he was interrogated by three N.Y.P.D. Intelligence officers and asked if he intended to kill the Mayor. This is Lederman s 17th arrest on speech related charges. He has never been found guilty on any of the charges. The arresting officer is P.O. Meeks. Arraignment is scheduled for 2/17/98 at 346 Broadway. For information contact: (718) 369-2111 e-mail [log in to unmask] A.R.T.I.S.T. web site http://www.openair.org/alerts/artist/nyc.html Photos and a tape recording of the incident are available. First Precinct (212) 334-0611 Mayor Giuliani's press office 212 788-2958 Background. Brooklyn resident Robert Lederman has earned his living by selling his own original paintings on the streets of New York City for the past 35 years. Lederman is a plaintiff in the street artist Federal lawsuit and President of A.R.T.I.S.T. He s been arrested a total of 18 times for First Amendment protected speech related activities. This breaks down to 12 times for selling or displaying his art; three times for protesting artist arrests in SoHo; one time for posting a political leaflet about the street artist issue on a lightpole in SoHo [the case is now in its eighth month in Criminal court]; one time in Washington D.C. for handing out leaflets about the street artist issue in front of the U.S. Capitol {a trial was held and a decision is still pending; the judge resigned rather than rule on the case] and now one time for using a piece of chalk to criticize Mayor Giuliani. Lederman believes that Giuliani has shown a consistent pattern of contempt for New Yorker s Constitutional rights generally and for First Amendment rights in particular. Police officials have told Lederman that Giuliani personally ordered them to arrest street artists. Reporters have told Lederman they were threatened by the NYPD with being cutoff from Police Department sources if they continued to cover the street artist story. It s certain that if Lederman had written Rudy Giuliani is great instead of Giuliani = Police State he d never have been arrested. In other words, the arrest was based on censorship of Lederman s political statement. Lederman and members of A.R.T.I.S.T. intend to do a Chalk-In against the pedestrian barriers in Midtown this coming week in order to draw further attention to the Mayor s arbitrary limiting of basic rights. Lederman discovered the chalk idea after being arrested for posting a leaflet. He recycles and uses small squares of drywall found in dumpsters and garbage cans on the street as chalk. The chalk is non-permanent (it blows away by itself after a few hours) and extremely noticeable. 1/15/98 Dear Editor, Police State of the City Watching the Mayors State of the City address in handcuffs from the basement of City Hall while surrounded by cops gave me a real insight into what Giuliani means when he says, "This is my chance to do all of the things that I was too timid and restrained to do in the first administration." I m one of the criminals and police bashers he admonished before a handpicked audience of admirerers enthusiastically clapping and cheering on cue. My crime? Writing GIULIANI=POLICE STATE with chalk on the asphalt near the Great Dictator s armored car. Every day New York City moves closer to becoming a caricature of a third world totalitarian state. All that s needed to complete the picture is torch-lit rallys and a snappy salute demonstrating our respect for police officials. Robert Lederman President of A.R.T.I.S.T. 255 13th St Brooklyn, N.Y. 11215 718 369-2111