If you live in a city, chances are you know to avoid the streets during the last Friday of every month. That's when the event, Critical Mass, takes over with hoards of bicyclers all gathered together to ride the streets, snarling traffic, and calling attention to the plight of the two-wheeled rider. Some call it a social movement, a celebration, some a protest ride, and others, the mildly creative, "Critical Mess." Whatever the nomenclature, it's a happening that inspires passion — like this video taken at last Friday's Critical Mass ride in New York City.
In the video — especially in the slow-motion replay — it appears as though the police officer approaches the bicyclist and shoves him over. The officer has since been placed on desk duty pending investigation of the incident, but the video fully encompasses the conflicting viewpoints of mass disobedience as a means to enact change. The riders intend to disrupt order. That's the means by which they make their message heard — the thought is if enough people, a critical mass of people, follow suit and subjugate the norm, the norm will be questioned. However, from those on the other end of the "conversation," the disruption caused by these methods does more to denigrate the cause than to gain followers.
To those questioning why the police don't do more to control the event, and perhaps stop events like the one captured in the video, the Seattle Post Intelligencer had this to say yesterday: "police don't exactly have a hands-off policy, but they're not going to devote significant resources to the regular act of civil disobedience."
Is Critical Mass the perfect example of change-inspiring civil demonstration, or is the emphasis really on "disobedience?"
Giorgio Armani
Ernest Jones
Christian Dior
It's a little unclear exactly what message the cyclists are trying to send.
1I agree, Michelin. I think everyone on the road (at least in DC) needs to remember that cyclists, pedestrians, and vehicles all share the road. I almost got hit by two cyclists running a red light in Washington Circle this morning!
2I have a few guy friends who do CM in Philadelphia and I think they are so dumb for doing so. If they are trying to spread awareness of cycling, then they are doing a terrible job of making fans of it. They say they do it just for fun, but it's interrupting the lives of everyone else. I really hate CM.
3Aren't they blocking emergency vehicles too? Couldn't that mean life or death to someone? Or damage of property in cases of fire?
4I still don't understand what they are trying to build awareness for! The environment (ie, don't drive, bike), biker safety, biking in general?
It seems like if you want to make an impact, have a clear goal and purpose.
5What is the point of this exactly?
Oh, and did anyone hear about that mob of bicyclists who surrounded some guy in his car earlier this week, smashed up his car, and (I think) beat the driver up as well?
6I wish i could shove them over, whatever their "cause" is , no one cares but them, and they don't care about anything else but their "cause"
7No Jude, didn't hear about that. That is awful. Was it in NY?
8Everytime I take my dog for a walk I have to watch for cyclists. They do not obey the rules of the road at all!
9Downtown Ft. Worth has amazing bike patrol policemen/women. They will go after the other cyclists. Watching a good chase is a nice surprise when I go out. I love when the messenger tries to duck into a parking garage....like the cop can't go too!
10GS, apparently Seattle, and apparently it was during a CM demonstration:
"SEATTLE – A demonstration turned violent Friday night after a group of cyclists taking part in the Critical Mass demonstration got into an argument with a driver on Seattle's Capitol Hill.
Critical Mass is a group of cyclists that takes to the streets the last Friday of every month to promote cyclists' right to the road.
It's wasn't clear what sparked the confrontation at 15th and Aloha, but witnesses say they saw about a dozen cyclists surround a white Subaru, blocking in the driver.
'There was some screaming and yelling and crunching as he pulled out into the street,' described witness Mark Pedersen.
Apparently, the driver felt intimidated and tried to back up to get away, but he backed into at least two cyclists.
He then tried to take off, but cyclists chased after him, bashed in his car window and assaulted the driver.
'There was a giant hole in the windshield... and blood around his neck,' said witness Barbara Rockey.
The driver was taken to an area hospital.
The two bicyclists suffered minor injuries in the melee.
KING 5 was told there were two passengers in the Subaru. One appeared to be a pregnant woman. It was not immediately known if the passengers were injured.
It was not clear how many cyclists were arrested.
The cyclists on the scene declined to comment on what happened."
From what I saw on CNN, apparently they also slashed the guy's tires.
11Wow, they really got their point across, didn't they?
And thanks for the info Jude!
12First of all that officer’s actions were outrageous and if I was his commander he would get a good ear full of the wrath that can slip off my tongue.
The point of critical mass is a good point however at some point they have to come to the realization that the means do not benefit the cause. Presumably the point is to educate, create sympathy and generate support for their cause. However, in reality what they are fostering is antipathy which creates a barrier of indifference & frustration in the very people they're trying to reach.
I'm not saying don't protest but protest smart and recognize when something is not to the benefit of your cause.
13It didn't register with me at first that your last comment wasn't part of the story and I was like, "that's really casual writing considering the rest of the piece." Duh!
Anyway, that's horrible. People just get such a sense of entitlement. I'm sure a mob mentality kicked in, too.
14No problem, GS!
hypno, what exactly is the point of CM? You seem to know
15It's unfortunate that the guy backed into a couple of them, but it sounds like he was just really freaked out. I would have been, too. I'm glad I've never seen a CM demonstration in San Diego.
16Hypno, well said again. Are you a biker? Not leather and tats, but helmet and tight spandex?
17Love the new avatar, GS!
18Thank you, thank you!
19I had some friends in Chicago who were into it and the folks in CM really ran the gamut. A large number of them made it sort of a goofy party - you'd get dressed up bikes and music and waving at people and it diffused a lot of the tension of being stuck in traffic due to them. There are also some pretty hard-core, militant types.
Sorta like a lot of animal rights/eco groups - it really runs the gamut.
I think the CM rides have several aims: 1) to raise awareness of bikers being on the road, 2) to assert bikers' equal rights to be on the roads, and 3) to cause drivers stuck in rush hour traffic that is being made worse than usual to question whether they should use a different mode of transportation.
I'm sympathetic to their goals, but boy, if you need to get somewhere in a hurry, it's sooooooo aggravating.
20From what I understand Jude Critical Mass was created mainly in response to urban bicyclists who were and are subject to very dangerous conditions by drivers who stubbornly refuse to share the road with them. It has resulted in one to many injuries and deaths.
I was witness to such an incident about two months ago. A bicycle messenger was legally riding in a left turning lane here in downtown San Francisco and this driver rode his @$$ and was honking hysterically getting so close to the bike as if threatening to hit him. The biker finally stopped looked back and said what's your problem? Then the driver gets out and starts to pick a fight it was ridiculous. Luckily several pedestrians were on the biker’s side and came to his defense but this is just one of the incidences that bikers have to deal with.
21Oh, okay. I see. Now I understand the validity of Critical Mass's cause.
With that being said, however, is staging mass demonstrations like these, which probably enrage a lot of drivers who normally might not have negative opinions of bicyclists, really the most effective way to sell their cause?
22I don't believe cyclists DO have equal rights to the road. They don't pay taxes in the form of registration and inspections, they don't have to get licenses, and roads aren't designed for them in the first place. The way most cyclists disregard traffic rules is also a major safety issue.
23I have seen so many cyclists riding illegally and getting upset with drivers, though. If cyclists want to get respect, they have to be willing to give it. (As a group, of course.)
24Not sure where you live Michelin but in California bicycles are just as much a vehicle of the road (city streets) as cars, which brings me to your point lilkimbo they are also subject to the same laws of the road.
Again another situation where there are no clean hands. Both sides need to reform their ways and strike a harmonious compromise if we're ever going to find the right of way through this mess.
25Again another situation where there are no clean hands. Both sides need to reform their ways and strike a harmonious compromise if we're ever going to find the right of way through this mess.
I think this is especially important now that more people are biking and more cities are developing bike share programs.
26Roads aren't designed for cyclists?
Here in Boulder, CO there are bike lanes on many, if not most streets.
"The way most cyclists disregard traffic rules is also a major safety issue."
Really? I don't dispute that there are cyclists who disobey traffic rules. Just as there are many car / truck drivers that do the same. I do, however, dispute lumping "most" cyclists together and stating that they disregard traffic rules.
27I think the percentages are probably about the same for cyclists/motorists/pedestrians who disobey traffic rules. It's just that the consequences are vastly different.
28I don't know if things are as harmonious as they look but whenever I see scenes on TV of busy city streets in China & India where you have hundreds of bikes happily riding along with hundreds of cars it makes you realize it's all about mind set. The merging of bike & car culture here in the U.S. is more like a shot gun wedding.
29Agreed. I have met many people who didn't realize that bike riders where supposed to ride on the street and not the side walk. Unfortunately, down here in Texas, we don't have many bike riders besides recreational riders. Things are just too spread out for most people to use bikes as a form of everyday transportation.
30I don't understand the point of the police officer knocking the guy off the bicycle. That just made him look like an ashole.
31As a cyclist in Boston I wholly support CM. It is ridiculously dangerous for cyclists and even though many neighborhoods in Boston/Cambridge/Somerville are adding more bike lanes it's still fairly unsafe. I've seen cyclists doored and I've nearly been hit myself while following the rules of the road.
I remember two years ago when a rash of ghost bikes (bicycles painted white to memorialize those who have been struck by cars and died) popped up in the city and it was absolutely heartbreaking. That is why I support CM as well as free helmet programs.
Generalities aside, there was no reason for the cop to shove that cyclist like he did. What a shame.
32The point of Critical Mass is to show that bikes are traffic, too. Cycling is a legitimate means of transportation, and seeing as bikes have wheels, they are (in most cities) required to travel by road -- not sidewalk. So Critical Mass puts a lot of bikes in the road at once -- and temporarily causes congestion -- because they're trying to demand attention and promote true road sharing.
To someone above who said that roads weren't made for bikes - yeah, that's true in a lot of cases, but it being reality doesn't make it RIGHT. In recent decades, our country has been completely given over to the car - particularly most of our metro areas - and it's a disgrace. You ever try to walk in congested suburban areas? That can be a bigger nightmare than cycling, and that's just sad.
I often argue with my partner over cyclists' disregard for road rules. Yes, many cyclists DO follow traffic rules and I thank them immensely because that is the only way cyclists are going to build the public's respect for them and start changing our culture. But, unfortunately, too many cyclists demand respect as "traffic" yet disregard traffic rules and put themselves and others in danger, thus furthering the public's dislike for them and the belief that they're all a bunch of irresponsible chumps.
Cyclists have the right to be on the road JUST AS MUCH as cars, but they need to accept responsibility with that right and do their part to ensure everyone's safety as well.
33Well said, outtajo. I feel like the cyclists who don't follow rules ruin it for everyone else. I guess that's true of many things in life, though.
34It reminds me of this exchange from Saved by the Bell:
Kelly Kapowski: I hate men, especially Zack Morris.
Albert Clifford Slater: Hey, don't judge us by our worst specimen!
35I bike commute. When the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition did not condemn critical mass after they broke private property and intimidated a family of tourists, I cancelled my membership and stopped giving them money every year. Here in SF, we cyclists have it very good. While it could be better, I am sure that the way to make it better is not to act like jerks.
Who knows what happened in that video, but I'd sure be inclined to give the officer the benefit of the doubt as I tried to figure it out if I were investigating it. And if anyone thinks they are sticking up for my rights as a cyclists, do me a favor and just be polite instead.
36Critical Mass only inspires me to get a Hummer.
37One on four wheels Rac?
38Oh jeez, hypno.
39I don't know about other states, but in Texas cyclists don't pay taxes to help build and maintain the roads they claim equal rights to ride on. Gas taxes are supposed to go toward road maintenance, cyclists don't pay that. They also don't have to get vehicle inspections or have to get license plates. If you don't have an automobile you can get an exemption from the road maintenance portion of your property taxes. Finally, they aren't required to get a license that proves they have minimum driving skills and knowledge of traffic rules.
So, at least where I'm from, cyclists are not entitled to equal use of the roads.
40Seattle is a pretty good place for bicyclists, from what I hear from my friends who commute via bike....most roads here have dedicated bicycle lanes and, for the most part, drivers are more than willing to yeild to bikes when there isn't a dedicated lane for them (at least I know I am).
41ugh! yeild should be yield above - sorry....I should spellcheck before posting!!
42Mich, interesting! I hadn't thought about that aspect.
43I live in a college town (Just voted #1 college party town! Go Gators!...sigh) and we have lots of bicycles to deal with, mostly down by campus though which is why I avoid that area.
44But a bike also causes much less wear and tear on the road, and I would bet that everyone is paying some amount toward road maintainance in other taxes -- it's unlikely that road maintainance could be completely funded through a gas tax alone.
45I just participated in my frist critical mass this past friday and it was the greatest thing i've ever done. too many times in my city (philadelphia) have cars not given 2 thoughts about me and have almost hit me. for one day, for a couple of hours, bikers have the road. cars can wait for a light or two while we have the road for once.
46Civil disobedience inspires violence.
47it's just about bikers having the raod for once. plus without civil disobedience, nothing gets changed. while im not putting this on the level of the civil rights movement, civil disobedience took place and that was obviously for a good reason, even though people at the time didn't agree.
48"plus without civil disobedience, nothing gets changed."
That is a pretty broad and untrue statement.
49I agree, GS. And if cyclists as a whole are so concerned about "having the road for once," maybe they should tell their worst members to stop practically mowing down pedestrians and to follow all of the rules of the road. To me, critical mass punishes everyone, including the majority of drivers who respect cyclists.
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