Moving Target,Winter 1991
Dear City Cyclist
When I started bike messengering in 1976, I rarely saw messengers treateddifferently than other building traffic. I only remember one ridiculousplace that forced messengers to deposit bags with security before takingthe elevator. These days it's not uncommon for messengers to have to sign-in(sometimes also sign-out and show ID), use special entrances and or elevators,or be directed to special ground floor or basement messenger-centres (thelatter sometimes turn out to be a time saver for us). Justifications givenare that we're "rude , "criminal or take up too much elevatorspace and time . "The messengers are, by and large, an unruly group, said the management of a SoHo building in a memo announcing the restrictingof messengers to the freight elevator. The minutia of possible truth toany of the above in no way justifies singling us out and collectively hasslingus. I believe we're victims of the continuing yuppification- gentrificationof NYC. With our minority backgrounds or counterculture looks, messengersdon't fit into the scheme of the clean-carpeted Trump World of perfectlybehaved and manicured Barbies and Kens.
To me it's a simple segregation story: take a look at the skin coloursof those who pass freely to the elevators and those who are pulled overand prevented from freely passing: "Hey YOU, sign in. Do you haveID?" Security measures have increased against messengers proportionalto our numbers but also proportional to the increasing percentage of minoritiesamong us (in 1976, 50% minority; today, around 80%). In this way, a largeportion of the bicycling community is daily degraded. If any bicyclistsout there have any pull with their building management and would like tohelp us, please contact the Independent Courier Association (ICA). Untilthen, watch out for me dodging security guards, or look me up logged under"Batman", X", "Khrushchev , or similar nom de guerre.
The Enigmatic Emissary, Brooklyn.
Reprinted from City Cyclist(mag of Transportation Alternatives) NewYork.
| main | articles | laws | zines | report | 10-9 day |
If you have comments or suggestions, email me at messvilleto@yahoo.com