This Friday a group of 25-30 activists (including 6 children) gathered across the street from the Richmond Police Department armed with several boxes on non-toxic chalk. We were there to protest the $325 ticket issued to a mother, along with a ban from all city parks, for her child’s use of chalk on some rocks at Belle Isle. After hearing this story on the news, I started a Facebook event to “chalk the police” in Richmond, VA. The response was amazing, and we were able to gather a wonderful group of peaceful activists, along with every major news network in Richmond! The event was a huge success, with no arrests, no tickets, and lots of pretty pictures.
People often ask me how I discovered the ideas of liberty. Like many others, I was taught about government in school using state approved curriculum; which never mentions the ideas of liberty, self ownership, and personal responsibility. In addition, I was raised in a extremely liberal area, which gave me a socially acceptable set of morals that included support of government social/welfare programs. This was not because I disliked the idea of private charity and personal compassion; but rather, I believed it to be the only method of mass charity (the ability to fund care for many people at once). It was my experience in trying to use these social programs which led me to discover the ineffective, wasteful, and harmful effects they create. They didn’t help people. They gave those suffering the bare minimum for survival, but wasted so much time, and came with so many requirements, that those the government “helped” would never be able to move forward. They would become dependent on the system for survival, which skews this “help” to be thought of as a “right”… because obviously everyone feels they have a right to life. (more…)
Today all charges against the Lemonade Liberating 3 were dropped!
Upon arriving for our 2nd appearance in the Washington DC Superior Court, my fellow ‘lemonistas’ and I had no idea what to expect. We very well could have been taking our last steps as free people, facing up to a year in jail… for selling lemonade. However, we were overjoyed when the judge called us to the front, and with a big grin said, “your case has been dismissed, you are all free to go!” I think he was as happy as we were.
Immediately after exiting the courtroom, we made our way over to the capitol building (where we had previously been banned from) and snapped some pictures from the scene of our NON-crime. It was a great day for all of us; but more importantly, for liberty. We were able to show another example of how the government will try to crush peaceful people into submission with orders and threats, until they reach a point where they are forced to choose between backing down or creating a martyr. Either way, they lose. (more…)
On August 20th, 2011 at 12:31pm on the Capitol lawn in Washington DC, Kathryn Dill, William Duffield, and I were arrested for selling 10cent cups of lemonade. The events leading up to our arrest, along with our capture and kidnapping were beautifully documented by several activists who came armed with cameras (see high quality video below); therefore, I feel no need to cover those details. However, once we were taken away, there were no more cameras to share our experience.
This Saturday, August 20th, I will be broadcasting LIVE from Washington DC; where brave liberty activists will join me to “illegally” sell lemonade on the Capitol lawn.
We stand together to protect the freedom of all peaceful people, who face threats of violence for the simple act of selling lemonade. There have been hundreds of accounts from across the nation of police shutting down children’s lemonade stands due to lack of government permits.
These permits are “required” by local governments, using excuses of ‘health and safety’; and can cost hundreds, even thousands of dollars. But, should the permitted vendor cause health or safety issues, the government that issued the permit is not liable for permitting a dangerous business. Bureaucrats face no consequences. So what is the purpose of these expensive permits? To gain more money for local governments; to force compliance and subservience to government “authorities”; and for larger businesses to cut out their competition… even if that competition is a couple of kids with a lemonade stand.
So join us in Washington DC at noon, or watch LIVE and join in an online conversation about the event!
SELLING LEMONADE IS NOT A CRIME!
For more information about Lemonade Freedom, head over to LemonadeFreedom.com
