Posted in San Jose Mercury News on Thu, Jun. 08, 2006
Protesters dressed as clowns stage event at Army recruiting post
By Fred Dodsworth
Knight Ridder
The Clown Army tried to join the real army and the soldiers weren't happy.
Two dozen protesters in clown costumes descended upon the Oakland Army Recruiting Center on Broadway on Thursday shouting that they wanted to join the service so they could use military equipment to bring fun to Iraq. Inside the recruiting office about six protesters disrupted recruiting efforts with chants and clown activities.
Jacob Crawford, a member of Berkeley CopWatch, documented the action until his video camera was wrenched out of his hand and broken by a soldier. He said the camera cost him $1,000 and he intends to file a claim for damages.
The soldiers called the police and the protesters were told to evacuate the army's office at approximately 2:30 p.m. or face arrest for trespassing, said Oakland police Sgt. Johnny Davis.
The protest continued outside on the sidewalk, eliciting honks from passing cars while police officers in three squad cars observed the activities from a distance.
``We will facilitate their First Amendment free speech rights,'' Davis said. ``They are allowed to protest as long as they are not within the commercial space and as long as they don't block the entrance.''
The recruiting station's doors were closed and locked after the clowns moved to the sidewalk.
``Yesterday we saw an ad on TV for the army,'' said a young woman in face paint and a clown costume who identified herself as Pvt. Dinosaur from Oakland. ``We want to join the army of fun so we can fly the big helicopters and drop candy on all the children of Iraq.''
The Clown Army began three years ago in England and came to the Bay Area three months ago, said a clown who identified himself as Maj. Mischief.
Protesters dressed as clowns stage event at Army recruiting post
By Fred Dodsworth
Knight Ridder
The Clown Army tried to join the real army and the soldiers weren't happy.
Two dozen protesters in clown costumes descended upon the Oakland Army Recruiting Center on Broadway on Thursday shouting that they wanted to join the service so they could use military equipment to bring fun to Iraq. Inside the recruiting office about six protesters disrupted recruiting efforts with chants and clown activities.
Jacob Crawford, a member of Berkeley CopWatch, documented the action until his video camera was wrenched out of his hand and broken by a soldier. He said the camera cost him $1,000 and he intends to file a claim for damages.
The soldiers called the police and the protesters were told to evacuate the army's office at approximately 2:30 p.m. or face arrest for trespassing, said Oakland police Sgt. Johnny Davis.
The protest continued outside on the sidewalk, eliciting honks from passing cars while police officers in three squad cars observed the activities from a distance.
``We will facilitate their First Amendment free speech rights,'' Davis said. ``They are allowed to protest as long as they are not within the commercial space and as long as they don't block the entrance.''
The recruiting station's doors were closed and locked after the clowns moved to the sidewalk.
``Yesterday we saw an ad on TV for the army,'' said a young woman in face paint and a clown costume who identified herself as Pvt. Dinosaur from Oakland. ``We want to join the army of fun so we can fly the big helicopters and drop candy on all the children of Iraq.''
The Clown Army began three years ago in England and came to the Bay Area three months ago, said a clown who identified himself as Maj. Mischief.
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SF Bay Area
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Re: Article: "Protesters dressed as clowns stage event at Army recruiting post"
Fri, July 14, 2006 - 6:45 AMRight on CIRCA. The children of Iraq need candy and balloon animals.
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Re: Article: "Protesters dressed as clowns stage event at Army recruiting post"
Mon, August 7, 2006 - 7:45 PMRIGHT THE F ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YOU KEEP UP THAT SHIZZLE. wHAT CAN i DO TO HELP!!!!!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?!!?!???????? -
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Re: Article: "Protesters dressed as clowns stage event at Army recruiting post"
Tue, August 8, 2006 - 2:28 PMLots. :) Ask Moshe Cohen at clownswithoutborders.org , if you're feeling stumped for ideas.
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Unsu...
Re: Article: "Protesters dressed as clowns stage event at Army recruiting post"
Wed, December 19, 2007 - 6:20 AMas a clown who also fought in iraq, i found that juggling for children there, handing out pocketfulls of hard candies, and doing quick sketches for them really brightened an otherwise horrifying situation of having their home filled with occupying soldiers. -
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Re: Article: "Protesters dressed as clowns stage event at Army recruiting post"
Sat, December 22, 2007 - 10:38 PMIt's interesting how people sometimes think that bringing circus/clowning/juggling/et al to communities torn apart by war et al is not important. If nothing else, let them have laughter- especially children. Laughter transcends everything, and when a child laughs, perhaps a grown-up will laugh. Give someone a good memory to hold onto in the midst of so many bad memories and it may carry them through.
Duh.
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