On Tuesday, April 8, Low country Up is Good, PAC, Inc. in cooperation with other Charleston area social justice organizations will hold the first 1776 format, impact scaled demonstration in Washington Park, adjacent to City Hall at 80 Broad Street in Charleston, SC from 4 pm to 4:50 pm. City Hall and Washington park are on the DASH 211 and CARTA #20 Upper King Bus Lines (Both free due to years of work by our affiliate nonprofit Best Friends of Lowcountry Transit, Inc. This demonstration will be titled, “Wise Counsel for a Holy City.” Participation sign-up begins at 3:30 pm.
After the Demonstration, those who can't get into City Council Chambers for public comment are invited to join us at Container Bar on Mount Pleasant Street in Uptown Charleston where we'll enjoy libations, finish off the snacks before the people who actually got into the meeting catch up with us and watch the official proceedings on live stream. Container bar is on the opposite end of the free CARTA #20 bus line and thus as far as we can get from Mike Seekings on his own bus.
When you read about the mechanics rebellion a few paragraphs down, you'll know why Charleston activists drink. It it's been a bad day, Hamilton (AKA Oatmeal in the burning man world) drinks water at Container bar. If it has been a rewarding day's skirmish in the contest for a better world, he has one margarita. Wendy has cut him off from the food truck pizza. Oatmeal has so few good days that when there is a good one, someone always buys him his drink.
In the 1776 format, Lowcountry Up is Good builds a high impact demonstration within the 25 person limit imposed by the oppressive, anti free speech policies of the City of Charleston, which refused to agree to a court order authorizing detailed plans for a larger demonstration under supervision of a federal Marshall at a hearing on April 4th across the street in the Federal Courthouse before Judge Norton. In their court papers, the City said Charleston was dangerous. We tried to persuade the judge that throwing the Federal Government into the struggle to 175 aging liberals and 25 DSA members safe might lock things down. No dice.
The City of Charleston's hostility to
the 1st Amendment and it's policy of “Tourism and Real
Estate Development first, Citizens and working class people maybe
later when we're finished making money for the 1%” will not stop
Citizens from being heard. We're simply going to put together a
highly structured demonstration of committed social justice warriors,
some of whom need to be able to sing. Demonstrations of less than 25
people do not require a permit.
The 1776 format demonstration
consists of
1 designated leader and police liaison because Hamilton needs that ego reinforcement and he things it makes him look cool to Wendy.
7 people chosen to speak, read or provide spoken word social justice witness hopefully bringing some fresh chants and situation appropriate Shakespeare readings.
7 people who don't speak, but come to sing familiar songs or new ones they may have composed, acoustic instruments only. The city of Spoleto doesn't like PA unless you are the Bridge Run filling hotels at which point 15 thousand watts of “Don't Stop Believing” at 7 am in the morning is perfectly OK. We don't know if you can sing along without violating the participation cap.
6 people to hold signs, manipulate puppets, wave flags or provide non verbal content. Can free speed be silent? Yes, and very loud. Ask Alan Morris how loud his Nancy Mace cutout doll can be. Cutout Nancy won't answer our questions either, but she shows up to our town halls.
There are also 4 support personnel to run internet streaming and provide tech support and security. They also chase down fliers that are blowing away in the wind after being discarded by tourists who really only came to Charleston because they want to visit Confederate Disneyland, not a living city with a beating heard of freedom's civic discourse. The four support people stand for SC's forth century, marking a history of 194 years of Slavery, 69 years of segregation and about 20 years of mildly progressive change before the Christian Coalition, Tea Party and MAGA began spending the money of Billionaires to make SC Backward Again. Support is really important because they bring the snacks and drinks.
When you're living in the city where Denmark Vessey was hanged for trying to make slaves free and the Mechanics Rebellion was ended by the State Militia gunning down a labor movement of blacksmiths and carpenters with their slaves on Meeting Street, you need snacks.
Support handles security by watching the area. Unfortunately Support team can't really protect us. We have to pull out the prohibited bull horn and call the police for help. It's embarrassing, but we're no good at violence. We need professionals. Its scary, but you do get to see your tax dollars at work. Maybe the PD will send that nice officer that supervised us on Daniel Island. He wrote his thesis on the 1969 Hospital Strike and was thrilled to meet Louise Brown. He's into us. He can have a snack.
If you see Judge Norton, be nice. We have to go see him again about other things. He really listened to us last week. We believe he will again. Until and after those hearings, Federal Court Judges are the people protecting you from Elon Musk and Doge. Be really kind to them.
Don't give Judge Norton snacks or buy him drinks. That is unethical. There are rules against that unless you are on the Supreme Court like Clarence Thomas. Then private jet travel to all expense paid vacations underwritten by lobbyists with your wife who works for a PAC involved in cases before your court is OK. That is because James Madison believed the Supreme Court should have the authority to require us to trust them. It's good to be king.
Lowcountry Up is Good will be at the park starting at 3:30 pm. We'll sign people up there for the talk, sing and present teams and have standby lists for those waiting for their turn at what little free speech survives in the Holy City. Our tight little social justice road show starts at 4, last 50 minutes and will prove the forces freedom won't surrender the Holy City and We have snacks.
Image, Left, July 18, 2015 March to the Sea from Mt. Pleasant to the front beach of teh Isle of Palms. Permitted by both the Town of Mount Pleasant and IOP. Hamilton began leading the march but was retired to the sag wagon. 81 year old Lousie Brown assumed leadership and finished the march with Thomas Dixon. Transit to the Atlantic finally resumed after four more yeas of struggle.
Image, right, May 2024 protest outside Unity City meeting on John Street. Unity City sought to take over local government, churches and schools. It is believed that after community push back the effort, funded by hundreds of thousands of dollars in right wing funding, abandoned their efforts in Charleston.
Image, Left, Our Mary flag honors the memory of the late Mary Smith (represented by the fairy on the moon in the canton of the flag). If the court orders the City to permit this demonstration, the Mary flag will fly proudly in her memory.
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We'll be announcing the effort at next week's CARTA Board Meeting, so anyone who can pitch in now will really help. If you can help, reply to this message or Contact William Hamilton at 843-870-5299 or 
