Bikes
Ghost Bike Memorial in Pittsburgh
Posted August 6, 2009 by shaun in Bikes
Tonight, several folks organized a Ghost Bike installation and memorial service for Rui Hui Lin, 38, who was killed while returning from a delivery on his bicycle Monday in the Oakland area of Pittsburgh. The driver who hit Lin initially fled the scene after getting out and assessing the situation, but turned himself in to police this afternoon after cell phone videos of the accident and eyewitness accounts began to pour in. The event was somber, but it was good to see some local media attending, especially given the usual shoulder-shrugging that attends even the most intentional car-vs-bike accidents that have happened here in recent years. Ghost bikes continue to be a powerful memorial to cyclists who are injured and killed by motor vehicles - I'm interested to see how long this memorial stays in place.
Tall Bikes in Indonesia
Posted July 23, 2009 by k_c_ in Bikes
Some friends of mine are on a bicycle trip in Indonesia at the moment. Photographer Tod Seelie has posted some beautiful images on his blog Suckapants, there are 1, 2 , 3 installments so far. Check in on their misadventures on tall bikes and exploring, since they'll be there for a couple more weeks, and will then go to Japan!
Tod has a large collection of photos hes adding to on his Sucka Pants Flickr as well.
Tuff Stuff from the Buff
Posted July 14, 2009 by jmacphee in Film
Justseeds fellow traveler Marc Moscato is about to head out on 2 week Northwest bike tour showing a collection of short films and videos by artists in his hometown of Buffalo, NY. Riding along with David Gracon (and organized with Julie Perini), Marc will bring Tough Stuff from the Buff to a dozen theaters, all ages venues and non-traditional spaces throughout the Pacific Northwest this July-August.
Here's the dates:
July 17-18 Anacortes, WA | What the Heck Fest
July 19 Bellingham, WA | TBA
July 20 Vancouver, BC | Pacific Cinematheque
July 21 Vancouver, BC | Spartacus Bookstore
July 22 Nanaimo, BC | Outdoor show at CHLY
July 24 Victoria, BC | Open Space Gallery
July 26 Port Townsend, WA | The Boiler Room
July 27 Langley, WA | private screening
July 28 Seattle, WA | The Vita Warehouse
July 29 Tacoma, WA | private screening
July 30 Olympia, WA | Olympia All Ages Project
July 31 Chehalis, WA | The Matrix
August 2 Portland, OR | The Waypost
According to Marc:
Tough Stuff from the Buff highlights Buffalo’s DIY media arts community, focusing on works that blur the lines between video art, personal documentary and media activism. Representing a diverse group of artists, from accomplished media makers to youth-produced projects, the collection reflects the city’s public spaces, political struggles and its resiliency under late capitalism. Tough Stuff from the Buff acknowledges the origins of this tradition, while focusing on contemporary examples of those persevering against the odds of creating media in a dying rustbelt town. A website (tuffstuffbuff.wordpress.com) will be regularly updated, with photos, video and stories from the road.
My So-Called Bike: Book'Em & Free Ride Benefit
Posted June 18, 2009 by mary_tremonte in Bikes
We are throwing a big ole My So-Called Life-themed party at Free Ride, Pittsburgh's amazing recycle-a-bike shop. All proceeds from the party benefit Free Ride's Youth Mobile Bike Repair program and Book'Em's ongoing postage costs for sending reading material to prisoners.
Organizing crucial benefit danceparties is part of my practice as an artist, DJ, and organizer. Aside from raising much-needed financial support, creating social events like this allow new folks to connect to our ongoing projects, and create much-needed space and time for collective members and volunteers to hang out in a non-work-meeting setting. In collectives, relationships are so important, and sweet hangouts build that! Check out the details (Nutmeg B is Justseeds own Shaun Slifer) Thanks to A.Brick for the silkscreened flyer design.
Red (Pedal) Power
Posted May 5, 2009 by dylan_miner in Bikes
I thought some of y'all may be interested in what is happening in the Native arts community, particularly from an anti-colonial perspective. This summer, I am one of a handful of invited Indigenous art historians participating in a symposium at the Insitute for American Indian Arts in Santa Fe. Alongside other young intellectuals, we'll be writing some of the history of contemporary Native art. Once we meet and get some stuff written, I'll post my writings up here. In the mean time, scope this older essay from Do Not Park Bicycles!: Aboriginal Bike Culture, a rad exhibtion held two years ago in Manitoba.
The show, organized by aboriginal curator Jenny Western, addressed the relationship between contemporary Native artists and bike culture. I was one of the five artists in the show, which included America Meredith (Cherokee), Tania Willard (Secwepemc), Terri Saul (Choctaw), and Yatik Fields (Cherokee, Creek and Osage). It was a pretty dope show, based on an amazing curatorial proposition. In addition to having work in the show, I also wrote an essay in the catalogue called “Red (Pedal) Power: Natives, Bikes, and Anti-Colonial Art." Here is the essay as a PDF.
NYC 4th Annual Memorial Ride and Walk
Posted January 2, 2009 by molly_fair in Events
Sunday Jan 4, 2009
Memorial Rides:
Bronx - 10:45am
Queens - 12:00pm
Brooklyn - 12:45pm
Memorial Walk:
Manhattan - 2:30pm
Convergence:
4pm- Manhattan, Delancey at Allen Street
Gathering of cyclists, pedestrians, families and friends:
5-7pm
St. Marks Church
131 East 10th Street at 2nd Ave.
read on for detailed ride/walk schedule and check ghostbikes.org for updates
FREE RIDE Summer Party 8/8/08
Posted August 6, 2008 by mary_tremonte in Bikes
If you are in Pittsburgh this Friday, come on down to Free Ride, our Recycle-a-Bike project, for a good old-fashioned Summer Party. Proceeds benefit the Youth Earn-a-Bike program. It is also the going-away party for Just Seeds buddy Andalusia Knoll, who is moving to Philly to work with Prometheus Radio Project. Andalu (DJ Baglady) & Just Seeds member Mary Tremonte (DJ Mary Mack) will be spinning some sweet beats for you to dance to, along with DJ Pandemic Pete. Here are details:::
Another Last Friday
Posted July 28, 2008 by k_c_ in Bikes
NYC Critical Mass was last Friday, and as usual the police responded with Courtesy Professionalism & Respect. Im not sure which one of these is exhibited in the video below.
I heard about it thru this post on Gothamist.
RUST::: pittsburgh radical youth printshop update
Posted June 25, 2008 by mary_tremonte in Bikes
RUST (Radical Urban Silkscreen Team), pittsburgh's radical youth print collective, is in full swing!
young artist-activists completed their first project, celebrate pittsburgh people's history posters, and have begun a bike poster project, just in time for bikefest. one RUST member created an amazing RUSTy the shark mascot costume!
justseeds member pete yahnke is in town this week as a visiting artist, teaching students the fine art of marmoleum cutting & printing. pete's work can be seen in the windows of RUST for one-week only. this is a great location as it's right behind a bus stop on the main drag downtown, and the work is visible 24-7.
RUST is open to the public tuesday-friday 1-5pm.
wednesday night 5-9pm is youth open studio, open to ages 13-18. print what you want! free!
RUST is a project of the andy warhol museum and artists image resource
www.warhol.org
www.artistsimageresource.org
http://bike-pgh.org/events/bikefest/
Asif Rahman Memorial Ride update courtesy of NYC Street Memorial Project
Posted June 24, 2008 by k_c_ in Events
Memorial bike ride for Asif Rahman on Monday June 23, 2008
Join fellow riders and Asif's family and friends on to remember him and demand a bike lane on Queens Boulevard. Bring flowers and candles.
From GhostBikes.org
On February 28, 2008, Asif Rahman, was doing what he loved to do -- riding his bike on his way back home from work -- when he was crushed to death by a reckless truck driver on Queens Boulevard. He died instantly from internal injuries. The truck driver was not charged or ticketed. Asif's mother said:
"Asif was on his way home after a hard day of work. I was waiting for him to come home. He will never come home. I still wait everyday to hear his voice. But he doesn't come home and say 'hi mom'. He will not say it anymore. He was brutally killed by a reckless truck driver."
Ghost Bikes in New York Magazine
Posted June 17, 2008 by k_c_ in In the News
Joshua David Stein has written an article titled Ghost Riders about the Ghost Bike Project for New York Magazine. Really beautiful photographs by Christopher Griffith accompany the article.
I disagree with Stien's opening statement
As cycling in New York has become more popular, it has become increasingly deadly.I don't believe that the threat of automobiles were ever benign, they are always deadly. The manner in which NYC is utillized and designed for automobiles plays a role in how deadly they are to humans. Pedestrians are also at risk, Transportation Alternatives states that "NY has the highest number of pedestrian and cyclist deaths in the U.S.", and over 170 pedestrians were killed in 2003 in NYC. Should the same statement be said for the popularity of walking? If so then I'd logically assume the issue is with automobiles and the manner in which people drive them. NYC has evolved from a city designed for walking, and small animal drawn carriages, to a complex system of roads intended mainly for the movement of freight, human's second to that. That is the essence of the problem.
I will continue to ride my bicycle in NYC and everywhere else, and do so with the understanding that I am mortal. It is a pleasure and a necessity for me. And I hope that we, as creatures with incredible ingenuity, can create a safer environment for all pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists, preferably in that order.
The Ghost Bike Project is not intended to frighten those that ride or wish to, its making visible the cost of a city dominated by car culture.
Copies with the article can be found at newsstands now.
Towards Carfree Cities VIII
Posted June 11, 2008 by molly_fair in Events
June 16-20, 2008
Some of the amazing people involved in the NYC Street Memorials Project honoring pedestrians and cyclists, will be heading to Portland for the carfree conference to do a panel discussion-so check it out!
June 19, 2008 4-5:30 pm
Advocacy, Media, and Direct Action: Street Memorials and Successful Collaborative Strategies for Making Change on NYC Streets Moderator: Brooke DuBose, Planner, Fehr & Peers, San Francisco
* Nat Meysenburg, Web Coordinator & Volunteer, NYC Street Memorial Project
* Elizabeth Press, videographer, Streetfilms
* Caroline Samponaro, Bicycle Campaign Coordinator, Transportation Alternatives
* Leah Todd, Press Coordinator & Volunteer, NYC Street Memorial Project
* Peter Meitzler, transportation activist, New York
Bicycle Film Festival in NYC
Posted May 28, 2008 by molly_fair in Events
May 28-June 1
Bike lovers and cinephiles rejoice- the Bicycle Film Festival begins in NYC tonight! As always the festival features a wide range of international films, shorts, documentaries, music, art, and street parties, and contests. I am super excited that bike advocates and filmmakers Elizabeth Press and Clarence Eckerson Jr. of Street Films are presenting their work and there are films on local activist projects and people such as bike advocate Mary Beth Kelly (wife of Dr. Carl Henry Nacht), ghost bike memorial rides, saving pedicabs, recycle-a-bicycle, and the response to the distasteful DKNY orange bike campaign. Tonight is the event i am most looking forward to- Impossible Hour (1974) by renowned experimental filmmaker Jorgen Leth is screening with a live score by Simone Pace of Blonde Redhead. See you at the movies!
WABA Bike Prom
Posted May 22, 2008 by mary_tremonte in Bikes
If you're in the DC area this weekend, join Just Seeds member Mary Tremonte (DJ Mary Mack) at WABA's (Washington Area Bicycling Association) 1st Annual Bike Prom Dance Party!
DC's first ever Bike Prom will be held at the Black Cat. The Bike Prom is a chance for everyone in DC's cycling community to come together and celebrate their love of cycling. Come early, stay late, and bring a date. Formal wear is not required, but we strongly encourage costumes.
Where: The Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW, Washington, DC 20009
When: May 23, 2008. 9:30 pm
Cost: $5
Dance all night to the music of DJ's MaryMack(Pittsburgh), Jennder (WABA Staff & Riff Raff) and Vinni Von Blotto (Riff Raff)
YES! there wil be FREE prom photos, so show up early if you want your picture taken.
WABA will also be providing extra bike racks in front of the Black Cat.
Everyone gets a chance to win our raffle prizes donated by R.E.Load Bags, Fabric Horse, Chrome Bags, Microcosm Publishing..
Discounted membership packages will be available that include a free WABA t-shirt and other goodies.
“Seeing Green: Art, Ecology and Activism in Milwaukee” opens April 12th
Posted April 5, 2008 by nicolas_lampert in Events
image by Max Estes, "Your Bicycle Misses You"
Guest curator Nicolas Lampert invited over 40 local artists to work on a project for the duration of eight months. During the month of April, 2008 the show will be exhibited at Woodland Pattern Book Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin where the gallery will serve as a hub space, informing the viewer and the public of the many environmental projects taking place throughout Milwaukee, exhibiting visual work and books, screening films and holding discussions and events based around the exhibition.
Familiar names in the show to Just Seeds readers include Colin Matthes who diverged from his 2-D work and created surveillance camera birdhouses! Also, Susan Simensky Bietila (the co-organizer of Drawing Resistance) created a mural “28 Years of People Power” that celebrated the grassroots campaign that defeated the proposed Crandon mine on Wisconsin’s Wolf River. This alliance won an historic victory against one the most powerful mining corporations in the world.
During the next few weeks, I will post more details on the Just Seeds blog about specific work in the show including posters, stencil projects and more.
Seeing Green opens at Woodland Pattern Book Center (720 E. Locust St., Milwaukee, WI.) on Saturday, April 12, 2008, 5:00-9:00pm
Memorial Bike RIde-update
Posted January 8, 2008 by k_c_ in Bikes
Fred Askew
The 3rd Annual Memorial Bike Ride went as planned on Sunday, January 5th.
There were around 250-300 cyclists that attended the rides that eventually converged on City Hall, in Manhattan. Attendees included people unfamiliar with any of the deceased to parents and family members that had lost loved ones.
I'm proud of all the folks that have been involved in sustaining the Ghost Bike project and organizing the memorial ride. Thanks for keeping the memory of fallen cyclists alive.
Those whose honor we rode for yesterday were:
Juan Solis Franco Scorcia David Smith
Elijah Wrancher Habian Rodriquez
Carolina Hernandez Mark Grichevsky
Jeffrey Moore Anthony Delgado
Luis Ramos Craig Murphey Sam Hindy
and 9 Unkown Cyclists
Here are a few links I have come across
Radio
Free Speech Radio News
Rustbelt Radio-longer story than the FSRN show
Articles:
NY Times
Streets Blog
Action Direction
NYC Indymedia
Indypendent
Photos:
Fred Askew
Darko666
3rd Annual Memorial RIde & Walk for People Killed by Cars
Posted January 4, 2008 by k_c_ in Bikes
This Sunday, January 5th, will be the 3rd Annual Memorial Ride & Walk for people that have been killed by cars on the streets of NYC. Many pedestrians and cyclists pass away each year in NYC without any acknowledgment, the ride is to honor the deaths of the people who have died in the last year as a result of accidents with automobiles.
This year's annual memorial ride has three starting locations in the Bronx, Queens and Brooklyn. If you can't make it to a starting location, please feel free to join us at any stop along the route posted below. If you don't want to ride a bike, there will also be a march across the Brooklyn Bridge to honor all pedestrians killed in 2007. All rides will converge in Williamsburg and then meet the Memorial Walk at City Hall to participate in a 5:00 rally and press conference. See Ghost Bikes for more details.
The tentative schedule is as follows:
Alternatives to Spray Paint: Try Mud Stencils!
Posted December 29, 2007 by nicolas_lampert in Street Art / Graffiti
Milwaukee-based artist Jesse Graves created a number of mud stencils that he recently put up on sidewalks and the sides of buildings. Below is his “how-to-guide” and a link to his website with more images.
To avoid using toxic spray paint, I found a way to make mud stencils. Here is how you do it.
Materials: Mylar, X-Acto knife, tape, mud, sponge.
1. Design your stencil. Draw your stencil the size you want it, or design it on a computer and print it. Make sure you do not have islands (parts of an image that will fall out if you cut around them, like the middle of an O.) If you are using text, use a stencil font. If are using a computer print your design the size you want the stencil to be. If it is larger then 8X10 cut it apart in photo shop and print it in pieces, or enlarge it at a local copy store.
2. Cut it. Tape your design behind or in front of the transparent Mylar. Mylar is the same stuff used as transparencies for projectors, you can find a roll of it at art stores. Use the X-Acto knife to cut your deign out of the Mylar.
3. Get Mud. Find or make some mud. I mixed soil and water then beat it with a whisk. Make sure your mud is not watery. It should be about the same consistency as peanut butter.
4. Post it. Tape the stencil to whatever you want it on, it works on sidewalks or walls. If parts of the Mylar roll up put some tape under it. Then use the sponge to dab the mud on your stencil. Do not press too hard because if you squeeze muddy water out of the sponge it may sneak under the stencil.
5. Enjoy. Remove the tape on the outside of the stencil. Carefully remove the Mylar, and enjoy you non-toxic mud stencil.
This is still an experimental process. Post your comments, ideas, and pictures at http://mudstencils.wordpress.com/
GhostBikes.org launch
Posted December 12, 2007 by ryan in Bikes
After a few months work, the NYC Street Memorials project is launching GhostBikes.org, a website documenting ghost bike projects and locations in 28 cities across the world. Ghost Bikes are small and somber memorials for bicyclists killed on the street.
Members of Visual Resistance have been working on the New York Ghost Bike project since June 2005. It's the project closest to my heart. The new site is a step towards connecting activists in different cities and creating a platform towards safer streets for all.
The new site is intended to be a site for the worldwide cycling community. We hope to create a space where those lost on dangerous streets can be remembered by their loved ones, members of their local communities, and others from around the world. We hope to inspire more people to start installing ghost bikes in their communities and to initiate changes that will make us all safer on the streets.
This site was initially set up by the NYC Street Memorial Project. We have collected information on many other cities, but for the most part have only had access to media reports. This site reflects the NYC project very well, but much of our information on other cities is incomplete. If you have info on ghost bikes in other cites, please check the site and let us know.
People Cause Accidents
Posted May 29, 2007 by in Inspirations
About a week and a half ago I was sitting in my living room ogling over my bikes. I had just gotten home from my friend, Johnny's, house. He was generous enough to kick down some bike parts he had been collecting, and wasn't using. Sitting in front of an aluminum road frame I hope to build(if I ever make the time) I heard the screech of car tires.
There was a fwump! and a crash. I thought to myself "I hope that's just a car!" I ran to the window and leaned out over the fire escape to see a body laying in the street next to a BMX bike.
As many folks know, Visual Resistance started the NYC Ghost Bike project, so the first thing that flashed thru my head was, "holy shit, there's going to be a ghost bike in front of my house."
Impulsively I grabbed my camera, ran downstairs to document what happened. For me photographing an event like this comes from a sense that a "victim" may need visual documentation of injuries, location, license plates, police officer's identification, etc. It's less of the sick voyeur or objective documentor.
When I got outside there was already a crowd around the intersection and some people above the body on the ground. I still thought he was dead. Thankfully a bystander knew how to handle trauma situations and coordinated people until the ambulance came.
Coincidentally, waiting on the corner was a friend of the cyclist who had just been struck. The two were to meet up at this intersection and then go work on their bikes. Instead he took a car service to the emergency room where his friend, Shino, was treated for head injuries, broken bones, and gashes.
The driver, who thankfully stopped, was arrested for a suspended license. Its strange, for me, because I had empathy for him too. He was clearly remorsful and upset about what happened. When I was taking photographs, he was standing there too. He had seen the pool of blood below the cyclists head, the shoes that were ripped off his feet from impact, and the destroyed BMX bike. With all of my hatred and frustration with car culture, in this instance I couldn't blame this driver. I hold him accountable for being the cause of this accident. Although I wasn't as angry as I envision myself to react.
Drivers infuriate me. Cars parked in bike lanes, double parked on narrow streets, drivers distracted, talking on cellphones, aggressive maneuvers to go around other cars and cyclists, piss me off. Driving while intoxicated, and the deaths that have occured are unexcusable. What I'm conflicted with is how to hold people accountable. In accidents regarding bicyclists, the city government virtually ignores the rights of a cyclist. Rarely are motorists charged or convicted of wrongdoing. Sending people to jail, for accidents, doesn't appear to be a solution, to me, in most situtations. It may acknowledge the humanity of the particular cyclist, but not the greater attitude of motorists toward bikes.
One of the things I hope the Ghost Bike Project, with the memorial rides, is capable of doing, is create a greater consciousness of cyclists. Of the right to ride bikes on NYC streets, that they are entitled to space on the street. That motorists need to share that space, and the City needs to provide more infrastructure to ensure the safety of those that choose to ride a bicycle.
Off the soapbox now.
The day after getting out of the hospital, Shino called me. He heard that I had taken pictures and he'd like to get them. He wanted to write a story about the accident for his
Upon seeing him I couldn't help but think he was a ghost. His eye blood-red and a brace on his wrist. He was going for surgery the next day. I gave him the disc of fotos and told him I was grateful there was no need for a white bicycle at the intersection. He agreed.
You can check out his story "Life is Twisted" with the photos at Grindstate. The site layout may be a bit confusing for some, so fool around a bit. Its the first story up there.
Last, I want to ask everyone that drives a car, "look out for cyclists!"
Memorial Ride, Sunday 1/7/07
Posted January 4, 2007 by in Events
Visual Resistance has been working hard with Time's Up on the second annual memorial ride for cyclists killed in 2006. The rides are moving and powerful. Please come out for at least part of it if you're in town:
Last year hundreds of cyclists gathered as a group on the first Sunday of the year to mourn for all those who perished while riding a bike on the streets of NYC in 2005. On this day bikers rode in from the far reaches of every borough, stopping and paying respect at every crash site.
Inspired by the Visual Resistance ghost bike project which uses memorial installations as reminders of tragedies that took place on otherwise anonymous street corners and as a quiet statement in support of a biker's right to safe travel, the Memorial Ride seeks to bring bikers together to honor our fellow cyclists while bringing attention to the fact that all NYC bikers travel the same unsafe streets and face the same risks every day. And not all of us make it home...
Join us this year as we ride in honor of all the cyclists who were killed on the streets of NYC in 2006. We ride together in love and respect for our friends and loved ones, our grandfathers, husbands, and brothers, our sons and daughters, our wives, sisters, cousins, neighbors, co-workers, teammates, and classmates who were all needlessly struck down. We ride together in outrage and anger, sharing their stories--those that made the papers and those that didn't-- recognizing the fact that none of these deaths had to happen.
Ride with us. Please bring flowers, love, and rage.
Come to one memorial or ride with us all day. Check back on 1/6 and early morning 1/7 for weather updates, cancellations, and rescheduling.
Ride Schedule
Queens/Brooklyn/Manhattan Route
09:45-Meet @ Jamaica Center stop on the E or J trains.
Group will ride to Simpson Memorial together.
10:00-Frank C. Simpson, 174th St & Linden Blvd, Queens.
11:30-Jose Mora, North Conduit & McKinley, East New York
12:00-Shamar Porter, Linden Blvd & Williams, Brownsville
12:30-Keith Powell, Ave L & 93rd, Canarsie
01:00-Donna Goodson, Rockaway Pkway & Ave. D, New Lots
02:00-Bronx Jon, South 4th Street & Roebling,Williamsburg
02:45-Derek Lake, Houston Street & LaGuardia, West Village
Bronx/ Upper Manhattan Route
09:00-Meet @ Pelham Bay Subway stop. Last stop on the 6.
Group will ride to City Island Memorial together.
10:00-Ivan Morales, City Island, Bronx
12:30-Uptown Meet-up: 145th and 8th Ave, Harlem
12:45-Jamel Lewis, 145th St & 8th Ave, Harlem
01:30-Memorial for Pedestrians killed on the streets, E 96th and Park Ave.
02:00-Memorial for anonymous woman, 66th Central Park Traverse
02:45-Derek Lake, Houston Street & LaGuardia, West Village
The two group rides will converge @ the Derek Lake memorial.
02:45-Derek Lake, Houston Street & LaGuardia, West Village
03:15-Reginald Chan, 3rd ave & 17th street
03:45-Darren Lewis, 29th & 9th ave.
04:15-Dr. Carl Henry Nacht, Greenway & 38th street
04:45-Eric Ng, Greenway @ West & Clarkson
Ride will finish @ 5:15 at the Memorial for Unnamed Cyclists
(northwest corner of Lafayette and Houston Streets)
Ghost Bike for Eric Ng
Posted December 19, 2006 by in VR Projects
It's been 18 days since Eric Ng was killed. It doesn't seem possible. Time moves strangely; every day I get the news again. I'm finding it hard to write about this again, but here goes:
After an excruciating week, friends of Eric's organized a day of memorial events on Saturday, December 9th, starting with a memorial bike ride from Washington Square Park to the site of Eric's death on the West Side bike path. Around 200 cyclists joined together for a silent ride and extremely emotional gathering at the site. Dozens of people placed flowers on Eric's ghost bike. We spoke, screamed, cried, and sang. We rode from there to St. Mark's Church, where Reverend Billy officiated a moving tribute. Later in the night we threw a party at Time's Up, with a dance floor like a group hug.
When we installed the ghost bike the morning of the ride, Andy asked me if Eric's would be the last ghost bike I would work on. There was a distinct surreality to the whole process; I had to stop cutting the plaque's stencils each time the horror hit me. Too close. Too real. But in an odd way, Eric's is the first ghost bike I've ever done. I'm more committed to the project than ever; everything else seems remote, abstract.
This city can kill you. This society can blunt you with indifference. When we create ghost bikes, or go on memorial rides, we tap into the hurt of this world and choose to honor that stranger we know could be our friend, our sister, ourself. We choose to remember, even if we never knew. That empathy is a holy rebellion. That choice makes us whole.
------
A few days after Eric was killed, Onto wrote a beautiful article that expressed a lot of the things I have been thinking but still find difficult to articulate:
How do we connect the stories and struggles, murders and violence of Brad Will and Eric Ng? One filming, one bicycling. One north, one south. Both members of similar communities in NYC. How do we connect them both to the murder of Sean Bell? And tie them to the repression against Daniel McGowan? Think about them in relation to the daily car murders and daily border deaths? [...]The ghost bikes and memorial rides, the street demos and art making - these collective responses are both internally therapeutic and socially effective, creating a space both inside and outside ourselves to heal with tears and rage, amor y rabia. By consecrating the street - the only true home of an activist, especially bike activists - with collective acts of love and beauty, we remember the past by laying it in front of us, guiding our movements toward a place we don't yet know we're going....
Let us all struggle in the days ahead to build human-centered communities, to cherish those honest connections we've been blessed to make, to respect each other, and to remember to value collaboration and exchange over division and mistrust.
------
Thanks to everyone who came to the December 9th memorial ride. It has been immensely comforting to be a part of a community of activists and friends who knew how to come together and support each other. Thanks especially to Time's Up, and to Reverend Billy, who served as a true pastor, helping a community through their grief. Respect. If anyone has photographs from the day's events, please send them to us at visual.resistance@gmail.com. Folks who weren't there, check out Clarence's video on StreetsBlog, as well as photos by Nick and Brian.
------
There's this feeling I get when I hear a perfect song and just go: yes yes yes. That's the feeling I always got when I thought of Eric. In that way I lived more, through him. That will stay with me.
Eric Ng: Love & Rage
Posted December 4, 2006 by in Events
I wish to God I didn't have to write this: On Friday, December 1, Eric Ng was riding his bike up the West Side bike path. He was on his way from a show to a party -- that was Eric, always busy, always seeing people -- when a fucking drunk driver ran him down. The driver had traveled at speed for over a mile on the bike path, ignoring dozens of exits, literally dozens of chances to return to the road. Dozens of choices. The car hit Eric with such force that his bike was crushed, he was thrown into the air, his tire and shoe landing fifty feet away. The horrific details are in the news, if you want them.
Eric. What can I even say? If you knew him, you know. I met Eric at NYU, four years ago. He was three years younger than me. Straight outta Jersey, a beautiful punk rock kid with a constant smile on a direct line from a big heart. A staccato laugh like a snare drum in a string section. A teddy bear with muscles. I remember his guitar, taped together & with a few screws missing, the one time we played music together: "Dude. I think we should play it faster."
And now a phone call and a shock. Not Eric. I feel old too soon; Eric was 22 perfectly. A body full of honest energy and a face like contagious hope.
-----
I've been making ghost bikes for strangers for a year and a half. Eric's is not the first that made me cry, but it's the first that made me hurt. A big group of Eric's friends spent the weekend mourning, talking, and, finally, making. We made a ghost bike for him on Saturday and sunflowers on Sunday. Eric's memorial plaque reads "Love & Rage" -- no resting in peace for this rock star.
We are planning for a memorial ride this Saturday, December 9th, meeting at 1pm in Washington Square Park and then proceeding to the site of Eric's death. Non-bikers can head straight to the site, on the West Side bike path near Clarkson St. Please bring flowers (especially sunflowers), sidewalk chalk, paint, whatever you want. There will also be a memorial service after the ride at 2:30pm at St. Mark's Church with music and a slideshow, and a party at 8pm at Time's Up, at 49 E. Houston St.
Thank you to everyone who has been e-mailing and to those strangers who have already placed signs and flowers at the site. Thank you for your kindness and your anger both. A lot of people have been talking about pressing for physical barriers against cars on the bike path and other infrastructure improvements to help prevent future deaths. This is a great idea, and people should not hesitate to contact local elected officials, and get in touch with Time's Up and Transportation Alternatives, who I know already are working along those lines.
Eric's loss is a collective one; the sheer number of people who cared deeply for him is amazing. The depth of their pain is a mirror of the joy he brought to this world. That joy remains, pushed under but still there. If you ever had it, hold it.
-----
I know my words are ever inadequate to express all this. Please feel free to use the comments section for memories and messages.
Update: Information on funeral services and ideas for contacting elected officials are in the comments.
Update 2:We've finally confirmed a full set of events for Saturday:
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 9
1PM: Memorial bike ride. Meet up in Washington Square Park at 1pm. We will ride together to the site of Eric's death at 1:30 SHARP. Non-bikers can go directly to the West Side Greenway, near Clarkson St. By train: take the 1 to Houston St.
2:30PM: Memorial service at St. Mark's Church. Friends & family will share stories, show photos, and play music. St. Mark's Church is at the corner of 2nd Ave and 11th St. By train: 6 to Astor Place, R/W to 8th St, or F train to Houston St.
8PM: Memorial dance party. Do not go gently into that good night. DJs & live punk rock. At Time's Up, 49 E. Houston St. By train: 6 or B/D/F/V to Bleecker-Lafayette.
New ghost bikes
Posted June 30, 2006 by in VR Projects
Yesterday, members of Visual Resistance and Time's Up installed two ghost bikes for 23-year old filmmaker Derek Lake, killed June 26 on Houston St, and Dr. Carl Nacht, killed June 22 by a NYPD tow truck that cut him off on the West Side bike path. Transportation Alternatives writes:
In the past three weeks there were four serious bike crashes in New York City, three of them resulting in the deaths of individual cyclists, Donna Goodson, Dr. Carl Nacht and Derek Lake.On June 5, Donna Goodson was killed by a truck on Rockaway Parkway in Brooklyn. On Monday June 19, a taxicab driver opened his door and knocked a cyclist into the path of a passing bus on 10th Avenue in Manhattan. On Thursday June 22, an NYPD tow truck driver crossing the Hudson River Greenway hit Dr. Carl Nacht as he was riding with his wife northbound on the bike path. Dr. Nacht died Monday, June 26. On Monday June 26, Derek Lake was killed by a truck when his bike slid out of control and he fell beneath the truck on Houston Street at LaGuardia Place.
All four recent crashes were caused by dangerous conditions that are commonplace on New York City streets but should not be: drivers and passengers opening car doors into the path of cyclists; drivers failing to yield to cyclists and hazardous street conditions that can send bikes out of control.
We will be installing a ghost bike for Donna Goodson this week. For background information, see our ghost bike project page and our map of NYC memorials.
Update: Mike from Bike Blog has a nice photoset from the Memorial Ride for Derek Lake and Carl Nacht on flickr.
Ghost Bike for Andre Anderson
Posted May 16, 2006 by in Bikes
Tod Seelie sent us a link to his photos of the May 14 memorial ride in the Rockaways for Andre Anderson, a fourteen year old who was killed by an SUV on September 25, 2005. The memorial was attended by members of Andre's family, friends, and the bike community.
Andre's family has unsuccessfully been trying to press charges against the driver (who has openly made remarks about his lack of remorse) and have recieved lack of support from the authorities.
What makes Andre's death more of a shame is that according to Right of Way Andre's death falls into recognizable patterns, in accordance with their year 2000 analysis of cyclist deaths in New York, that Queens District Attorney Richard Brown has shown no interest in investigating Andre's death, and that the DoT has not taken any action to make sure that nobody else dies there by installing speed bumps and traffic lights.
Check out bikeblog.blogspot.com for more info. Tod Seelie has a report and photos on Suckapants.
Ghost Bikes for Argentina's Disappeared
Posted February 7, 2006 by in Bikes
In Argentina, ghost bike installations have a purpose other than honoring the memories of fallen bikers. The 380 stencils of bicycles painted throughout the city of Rosario represent the 380 people disappeared by the dictatorship following the coup in 1976. The image of the bicycle is a haunting and powerful reminder that the military often nabbed youths in the street, leaving their rider-less bicycles behind.
The military government detained, tortured, disappeared and killed anyone who was suspected of being subversive, including student leaders, critical journalists, and union leaders. Squads made of members of the armed forces and local police departments kidnapped suspected "subversives" from their homes, workplaces and even the streets. There were 14,000 political prisoners. Another 30,000 people were kidnapped by government agents. Because their bodies were never located and the military and police would deny that these people were in their custody, these 30,000 are considered "disappeared." Over 500 children were taken from detained parents and raised by families of members of the military. Many activists chose to flee the country. Thus, among other things, the government effectively eliminated a generation of leftist leaders.--from upsidedownworld.org
Argentina is building a collective memory of atrocities committed by the dictatorship through public demonstrations on the anniversary of the military coup and works of public art. The spraypainted message, "Pocho Vive" in the photo above honors Pocho LePratti, a community activist who grew up in a middle class family in Uruguay but chose to work with children in a shantytown in Rosario called Ludueña. During the Argentinean economic crisis and mass protests of December 2001, he was fatally shot and killed by police officers as he climbed the stairs to the roof of the school where he was preparing food for the children. The resistance of Pocho and other activists are spraypainted around the Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires as well represented by crawling ants.
Ghost bikes go worldwide
Posted February 5, 2006 by in Bikes
In the past few weeks, ghost bikes have appeared in at least three new cities across the world.
Chicago, Illinois
The Chicago Ghost Bike project created a memorial at the end of the January 27 Critical Mass ride for Isai Medina, whose home-made 'freak bikes' were a fixture in the local bike scene. A chopper bike painted all white was locked to a bike rack on the corner of Cortez and Western where Isai was killed by a drunk driver on January 4th.
Over 400 people attended the memorial ride, and police made four arrests as people gathered for the stationary memorial. The ride and ghost bike received lots of press attention: you can read the press release here, in addtion to coverage from Chicago Indymedia, La Raza, the Chicago Journal, and NBC5. See also Don Sorsa's photo gallery and the video of the NBC5 story (slow-loading MP4 file).
Tallahassee, Florida
Critical Mass riders in Tallahassee placed two ghost bikes for Dale Burton, who died October 30, 2005 after a driver hit him from behind, and Maxwell Veira, killed November 15, 2005 when an SUV cut him off as he was riding downhill. In addition to the standard plaque and white bike, the Tallahassee memorials included a beautiful stencil of a ghost biker ascending heavenward. According to TallyCat.org, one of the memorials has already been removed. The memorials garnered a positive article in the Tallahassee Democrat, and support from members of the victims' families.
Prague, Czech Republic
Bike activists created a large memorial for Jan Bouchal, coordinator of Auto*Mat, an advocacy group for Prague cyclists and pedestrians, and a contributing group to our Critical Mass Art project. Steven Loga, a co-editor for Car Busters magazine, wrote in the Prague Post:
On Jan. 6, Jan Bouchal, coordinator of the Auto*Mat project and chairman of Oživení, both of which promote cycling, was cycling home from his work in Malá Strana. A car struck him at the intersection of nábřeží kapitána Jaroše and Dukelských hrdinů in Prague 7. Six days after the accident, the 30-year-old died. . . .The outline of Jan Bouchal's body is no longer there, wiped away by snow and the heavy traffic that edges along this Prague embankment. Instead, at the site of the accident there is a monument — a small, white bike, a ghost bike, placed there after the monthly Critical Mass bike ride Jan. 19, part of the memorial evening. Almost 100 cyclists met at Jiřího z Poděbrad on the cold evening, only a few days after a snowstorm, and slowly rode through the city to the accident site, where another 50 people were waiting, crowded onto the traffic island. The ghost bike sits on that island, chained to a pole and surrounded by candles and flowers, with a sign that reads: "Zde srazilo auto cyklistu" — a car struck a cyclist here.
Chicago, Tallahassee, and Prague now join at least seven other cities with known ghost bike projects: London, Pittsburgh, Portland OR, Seattle, Highlands Ranch CO, San Francisco, and New York City.
We're currently working on a zine about our ghost bike project and would like to hear from people involved in similar projects in other cities --- the zine will be printed in time for Bike Month in NYC and distributed to artists and bike activist groups around the country. Let us know if you're interested in receiving copies or contributing. Thanks!
Video Of Bicyclist Memorial Ride
Posted January 21, 2006 by in VR Projects
Andrew Lynn has compiled footage from the Bicycle memorial ride on January 8, here in NYC and made a short documentary. It can be found on Breathing Planet, and worth a look. The event was a really powerful way to remember the lives of the 21 cyclists that were killed last year. And to remind people in NYC that we, cyclists, are a presence here in the city, and we demand respect and safety when we ride the streets.
Thanks to Sucka Pants for the heads up!
Our condolences go out to the families of Ivan Morales, the first NYC cyclist to be killed in 2006. And to Sarah Tucker, who was killed in a hit-and-run in San Francisco, on January 12.
She was heading down Polk Street at about 2 a.m., according to Inspector Pat Tobin with the department's hit-and-run detail, when she came to a green light at the intersection of Geary Street. A motorist driving a black Honda CR-V sport utility vehicle west on Geary apparently ran the red light, entering the intersection just before Tucker, who crashed into his passenger door."She sees him coming, she yells 'Hey,' that's what made some of the witnesses look up," Tobin said today. Tucker apparently did not have enough time to stop before slamming into the door of the Honda.
Tucker was catapulted off her bicycle, according to the Police Department, and landed in the street. She was taken to San Francisco General Hospital where she died at 9:46 a.m. The driver of the Honda is described as a black male, according to police.He apparently did not have any passengers with him. Damage to the door will be obvious, Tobin said. "All the witnesses said the passenger door had marked damage -- very noticeable," Tobin said. "All the witnesses got good looks at his face."
Any witnesses to the event itself or those who have spotted a black Honda CR-V with damage to the front passenger door are encouraged to call Tobin in the hit-and-run division at (415) 553-1641, or call the department's confidential tip line at (415) 575-4444
Memorial ride recap
Posted January 10, 2006 by in Bikes
Sunday's memorial ride for the 21 bicyclists killed in 2005 was a success, with over 100 riders from all five boroughs meeting up in Manhattan. We spent the weekend making seven ghost bikes together with Time's Up --- six for bikers whose names only recently became available, and one for the eight whose names have not been disclosed by the city bureacracy.
The ride (and ghost bikes) received a fair amount of press attention --- see the Village Voice, Indymedia, Staten Island Advocate, Gothamist, and Newsday --- which goes a long way towards raising awareness of cyclists' right to safe travel.
k.see has posted several photos from the ride on flickr and of the process of creating the ghost bikes in our photolog. I'll be updating our ghost bikes project page soon with full information on the recently-created memorials.
Thanks to fi5e and James for their help, without which we would've been hard pressed to pull this off on such short notice.
Memorial ride for slain cyclists
Posted January 6, 2006 by in Events
This Sunday, Time's Up! will be leading a memorial ride for the twenty-one bicyclists killed on the streets of New York in 2005. The rides will cover all five boroughs of the city and will pass ghost bikes for bicylists killed by cars. Visual Resistance will be installing a number of new ghost bikes for cyclists killed in the past year whose names have only just been made public. We will also be installing a memorial for the eight cyclysts whose names are unknown to us at the present time.
The police department and Department of Transportation are highly selective about the information they make available to the public. We know that 21 bikers were killed in 2005, but we have only been able to track down information on 13 deaths. Tragically, we are unable to honor the remaining 8 deaths by name. The tragedy of each loss is compounded by its coverup. In creating ghost bike memorials, we wish only to do a nice thing for the stranger who could be us. Sadly, the city bureacracy won't allow this remembrance.
So, Sunday we honor them all together. We will gather at 1pm in five different locations around the city, and meet up in Manhattan. The full details and locations are available on the Time's Up website. See you there.
Ghost Bikes for Liz Byrne and Angel Quizphi
Posted November 29, 2005 by in Bikes
In the past several weeks members of VisualResistance have installed two more Ghost Bikes. Thus far this year has witnessed 21 deaths in the NYC bicycling community. Each loss profoundly impacts friends and family, leaving an indelible mark on the community that they were just a vibrant part of. Annie Byrne wrote us from Seattle and asked if we could install a bike for her sister Liz Byrne who was killed on Sept. 23, 2005.
Here is a just a little of what Annie shared with us about her sister:
As for Lizzie, she was the ninth of 13 kids in our family (ya, I know, crazy right? Irish Catholic ; ) ). Anyway, Liz was an artist from the very beginning, and it was a huge deal when she got accepted to Cooper Union and moved from St. Louis to NYC in the late 1970's.After college, Liz worked professionally as a freelance designer (advertising and packaging design), but she did that just to pay the rent. Her true passion was painting and photography, and she continued to paint until her death last month. Liz was by far the most left-leaning in a pretty liberal family. Man did she ever hate George Bush. Not that that's so uncommon of course. ; ) She moved to Greenpoint in the late 80's and lived there ever since. Liz was also a serious cyclist, never owned a car. In fact, she was a bicycle messenger in the city during her years at Cooper Union. I'd say in the past couple of years she was riding something like 40 - 50 miles a week. To your point about the politics of this, I'm sure my sister would agree wholeheartedly in the cause of making our cities safer for people who choose alternative means of transportation. For her, cycling had a lot to do with her concern over the US's dependance on and politically abhorrent behavior with oil producing countries. (She emailed me this summer about a bumper sticker that said "What's our oil doing under their sand?" That makes me laugh even now.) Anyway, though I never talked with her about the Ghost Bike installations, I just know she would have loved the intent, and such a vivid form of social protest.
Liz's death was all the more tragic as it (as almost all bicycling deaths) was preventable. The driver was actually cited in her death and an investigation is ongoing as to whether there was negligence on the part of Budget Car Rental who had several vehicles parked at and around the intersection which may have obstructed the driver's view.
The second memorial which we installed was for Angel Quizphi, who was struck down by a drunk driver after finishing work at a Queens restaurent where he was a busboy. The driver, Yung Choe, was charged with vehicular manslaughter and driving while intoxicated. Quizphi had just days earlier proposed to Nancy Lazo who was waiting for him to come home that night.
After we install a GhostBike there is no telling how the surrounding community will respond. Jen Shao's bike was removed almost immediately from its spot, whereas the bikes for Andrew Morgan and Liz Padilla have become a part of their community.
We all sincerely hope that as people pass by each bike they give pause--even if only for a moment.
For more info, see all Ghost Bikes.
Jen Shao's ghost bike memorial removed
Posted September 22, 2005 by in Bikes
The ghost bike we created this weekend for Jen Shao, a 65-year old grandmother killed last Friday morning by a hit-and-run bus has been removed. A few of us went on Time's Up's memorial ride in memory of Ms. Shao tonight. We rode in silence from Houston St. down to Water & Governeur, where we had installed a white bike and a memorial plaque (pictured at right) Sunday afternoon. The installation was gone --- the chain had been cut from the pole and the bike removed. The bolts that held the plaque were still there, but the wood plaque itself was gone, probably removed with a saw or a sledgehammer; either way, a shamefully violent thing to do to a memorial.
We assume that the memorial was removed by the property owners of the adjacent building. Placed in the middle of Water St., a lonely cavern of corporate office buildings, almost completely empty of people after the workday's over, I only imagine that the ghost bike was an unwelcome reminder of human life and death --- an intrusion on the cold order of a block dedicated to money, not people. Compare this to what happened with Andrew Morgan's ghost bike after it was damaged by a cab: the bike was taken in by a nearby bar and kept there until it could be re-installed. That's the difference between a neighborhood where people live, socialize and give themselves space to relax, think, and care about their neighbors and human life in general, and a neighborhood where massive property owners obsessed only with order and cleanliness and a constituency of employees with no input or real interaction with the street life that surrounds them. To people like Bloomberg and Bruce Smolka, the latter is a vision of utopia. To me, it's the end of any kind of meaningful city, or citizenship.
We will replace Jen Shao's ghost bike. The memorials are a struggle against forgetting.
Ghost Bike for Jen Shao
Posted September 19, 2005 by in VR Projects
On Sunday, September 18, members of Visual Resistance created and installed a ghost bike memorial for Jen Shao, a 65-year old grandmother killed by a hit-and-run driver in the financial district last Friday morning. Ms. Shao was struck by a charter bus while attempting to turn from Governeur Lane onto Water St., a busy two-way street with no bike lane. The driver never stopped; police are classifying this as a hit-and-run, a potential felony.
Creating and installing ghost bikes is a sad and moving process. The death of a fellow bicyclist hits home, since we travel the same unsafe streets and face the same risks; it could just as easily be one of us. At Governeur and Water St. on Sunday afternoon, a collection of flowers and candles was laid out along with photographs and notes from neighbors and friends. We locked a bike painted white and bolted a small memorial plaque to a signpost as the cars continued to speed by. A biker and several pedestrians stopped and stood with us for a few moments.
The installation is intended as a reminder of the tragedy that took place on Friday, September 16th at this lonely corner in the financial district, and as a quiet statement in support of bikers' right to safe travel. Previous memorials have been installed for Elizabeth Padilla, Andrew Ross Morgan, and Brandie Bailey. Our hearts go out to their friends and families.
Each time we say we hope to never have to do it again --- but we remain comitted to making these memorials as long as they are needed.
See all the ghost bikes.
Ghost Cycles in Seattle
Posted September 8, 2005 by in Inspirations
Upon returning home to Seattle, our friend came across two ghost bicycles on her ride home from the airport. It turns out there is an amazing group called GhostCycle.org which has been collecting data on car-related bicycle accidents in Seattle since May 26, 2005. Cyclists all across Seattle submitted info on 103 incidents where a moving vehicle had struck them. On August 1, 2005 they installed 40 ghost cycles with plaques reading "CYCLIST STRUCK HERE" where the most numerous and most severe accidents have taken place.
The most powerful aspect of the project is the testimonials from cyclists who survived their accidents. Perhaps sharing the details of these experiences will help identify areas that need to be improved so that the roads will be safer for everyone.
A map on the site shows the locations of the 40 ghost cycles as well as photos of each installation. The site features statistics based on information sent to the site such as percentages of bikers who reported their accidents to the authorities, were obeying traffic laws at the time of the accident, were wearing helmets and using lights when they were struck, and accidents that were hit and runs. The links are also extensive and include bicycle advocacy groups, lawyers, clubs, and memorials to other fallen cyclists. This group is truly an inspiration.
Related: VR's own Ghost Bike Project.
Andrew Morgan's Ghost Bike Replaced
Posted July 18, 2005 by in Bikes
There's been some rumors and confusion about this, hopefully this will clear things up: Last week, we got word that Andrew Morgan's Ghost Bike had been removed. After asking around, the story seems to be that a car had jumped onto the curb and knocked down the pole the bike was attached to. The Downtown Express has details:
Crashing the crash sceneThe Houston St. area apparently isn’t even safe for the memorials to cyclists killed there. A cab crashed Saturday into a memorial bike placed on the sidewalk to honor Andrew Ross Morgan, 25, who was killed by a truck at the same spot last month while biking to work. The cab collided with another taxi at Houston and Elizabeth Sts. and then the cabs hit a parked car, knocked over a motorcycle and plowed through a no parking sign with the locked memorial bike placed by a group called Visual Resistance. One taxi passenger reportedly suffered minor injuries and two bar customers outside Tom & Jerry’s on Elizabeth St. were nearly hit. One factor that may have contributed to both accidents is that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority is working on a subway ventilation project on Houston St. between the Bowery and Elizabeth St., which has taken a traffic lane away on either side of the major cross-town artery and caused decreased visibility in the intersection for turning traffic. Cyclist Brandie Bailey, 21, was killed on Houston St. in May.
The good people at a nearby bar took in the bike so that it could be put back. We got in touch with them and replaced the bike and plaque Fridy afternoon. The memorial is back up just a few feet from its original location. As of this writing, all three ghost bikes are still in place. Thanks for everyone who has paid their respects at the memorial sites with flowers and messages. And thanks most especially to the friends and family members of Andrew Morgan and Liz Padilla who have contacted us since we started this project. Your support means the world to us.
Andrew Morgan, Rest in Peace
Posted June 24, 2005 by in VR Projects
At around 1pm today, members of Visual Resistance installed a "ghost bike" on the corner of Houston St. and Elizabeth St. in Manhattan. A bicycle, spraypainted white, and a small stenciled plaque were attached to a street sign as a memorial to Andrew Morgan, a 25-year old bicyclist who was killed by a truck at the same spot on Wednesday, June 22.
The memorial is the third of its kind. The first was installed June 15 in memory of Elizabeth Padilla, a 28-year old bicyclist killed during her morning commute in Park Slope. The second was installed June 21 in memory of Brandie Bailey, killed May 8 on Houston St. and Avenue A on her way home from work.
As noted in the comments to a previous post, Houston St. is the most dangerous stretch of road for bicyclists in New York City. Bicycle advocacy groups like Transportation Alternatives, Time's Up!, and others are working overtime to lobby the city for more physical infrastructure to keep bicyclists safe. And a growing network of artists and activists --- of which Visual Resistance is a part --- are working to raise awareness of bicyclists' right to safe travel.
Anyone interested in getting involved, email us at visual.resistance[at]gmail.com, or keep checking this site for more information.
Creating and installing a ghost bike is heart-wrenching every time. It's a project we would like not to have to continue. But we will create memorials as long as they are needed, in respectful memory of each life lost. Our hearts go out to the family and friends of Andrew Morgan, Liz Padilla, and Brandie Bailey.
Background: Ghost Bike Project.
Photos from the memorial vigil available here.
Another Biker Killed
Posted June 23, 2005 by in Bikes
Yesterday morning at around 10am, Andrew Ross Morgan was struck and killed by a truck on Houston St and Elizabeth. A few of us came across the crime scene yesterday morning but I hesitated to post anything here until I had more information. The Daily News has the horrific details. Bike Blog and NYC Indymedia will be providing additional coverage.
Friday's Critical Mass will be a memorial ride for Andrew. May he rest in peace.
Ghost Bike Project in the Daily News
Posted June 20, 2005 by in VR Projects
An article by Elizabeth Hays about the Ghost Bike project appears on the Daily News website:
Memorial outlines bike deathBY ELIZABETH HAYS
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
A 10-speed bicycle, spray-painted ghostly white and a tombstone-like plaque have been erected at the Park Slope corner where a biker was recently crushed by a truck.
The eerie memorial - called a "Ghost Bike" - is part of an informal web of similar projects that have been slowly popping up across the country at deadly bike crash sites.
"It's a quiet statement in support of bikers' rights for safe travel," said Eliot, a 24-year-old artist from Clinton Hill, who installed the memorial after dark one night last week.
Eliot - who declined to give his full name because, as he put it, "I'm sure it's illegal" - said he did not know Elizabeth Padilla, the 28-year-old cyclist, but he felt personally moved by her death.
"I've been in close calls riding to work just like she was," added Eliot, a member of a group called Visual Resistance. "A split-second difference and someone could be painting a bike for me."
Padilla, a public-interest lawyer, was killed instantly June 9 on Fifth Ave. near Warren St. when the driver of a parked truck opened his door, causing her to swerve and fall under a moving truck.
Eliot said he heard of the growing Ghost Bike trend from a friend in Pittsburgh, where bike advocates have installed similar memorials. It is thought to have started in St. Louis.
Other cities, such as San Francisco and Seattle also have seen the unsettling, all-white bikes pop up on their streets.
"I don't know if it's happened before in New York City," said Eliot. "I thought it would be a nice and respectful memorial to do."
Bike advocates with Transportation Alternatives said they thought similar memorials may have been erected in the city in the past, but perhaps only temporarily.
"Anything that draws more awareness to the problem is a good thing," said Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Paul Steely White.
So far this year, nine cyclists have been killed by cars or trucks - a 50% jump from last year, according to police statistics released by Transportation Alternatives.
Eliot said he hopes he has no reason to continue the Ghost Bike project.
"I'd like to say that we'll never do it again, but we may have to," he said.
Related: Ghost Bikes.
Ghost Bike Project
Posted June 16, 2005 by in VR Projects
In memory of Liz Padilla, a 28-year old bicyclist killed last week, VR members created a small and somber memorial in Park Slope. The night before a memorial ride led by a coalition of bike advocacy groups, a bicycle painted all white was locked to a street sign and a small stenciled plaque was bolted in place above it.
The installation is meant as a reminder of the tragedy that took place on June 9 at the corner of Warren and 5th Ave., and a quiet statement in support of bikers' right to safe travel. It was inspired by Ghost Bike Pittsburgh, which was in turn inspired by a similar effort in St. Louis.
We'd like to never have to do this again.
Further info: Ghost Bikes.
Memorials for Slain Bikers
Posted June 15, 2005 by in Bikes
The recent deaths of two young bikers, 21-year old Brandie Bailey and 28-year old Liz Padilla have sent shockwaves through the NYC biking community. Both women were commuters riding on busy streets with no bike lanes; both were killed by drivers who acted irresponsibly and claimed they never saw them, and neither death has resulted in any charges.
These tragedies have brought together a coalition of bike advocates to honor those killed and argue for safer conditions for the rest of us. (As Mother Jones said, "Mourn for the dead and fight like hell for the living.")
Bikers in Brooklyn held a memorial for Liz Padilla last Friday, and Time's Up has restarted their memorial stencil project --- marking the crime scenes the police ignore.
Now, FreeWheels is calling for a ride tomorrow morning (6/16) from Park Slope to City Hall. From the press release:
At 8 am on Thursday, June 16 cyclists representing an alliance of New York City bicycle groups will embark on a Vigil Ride from 5th Avenue and Warren Street in Brooklyn to the steps of City Hall, at 9 am, to memorialize Elizabeth Padilla, Brandie Bailey, Jerome Allen and the 201 other NYC bicyclists killed since 1995....At City Hall at 9 am the alliance will lay down flowers in memory of the 204 fallen cyclists and ask Mayor Bloomberg to convene a multi-agency task force to develop --- in cooperation with the NYC cycling community --- an action plan to prevent further deaths and injuries....
"It's time for the NYPD to stop coddling drivers who infringe on cyclists' lawful right to the road," says Charles Komanoff, co-ordinator of the traffic-safety group Right Of Way. "State and city traffic law are full of provisions intended to protect safe cycling, yet virtually none of them are ever enforced," Komanoff says.
An alliance of Transportation Alternatives, Time's Up!, Right Of Way, the New York City Bicycle Messenger Association, and FreeWheels ask Mayor Bloomberg to convene a task force of the Departments of Transportation, Health, Police, City Planning and Parks to develop an action plan to prevent further deaths and injuries to bicyclists.
Visual Resistance will be making our own contribution to the memorial project in the next few days. Between the city's scapegoating of Critical Mass and the lack of infrastructure for bikers in NYC, bikers are being forced into dangerous situations every day. It seems like an especially critical time to speak out for our rights and safety. These efforts and the nascent coalitions being formed around them are a great start.
Busy weekend for bikers
Posted May 26, 2005 by in Events
This weekend is chock-full of wonderful events for the two-wheeled among us:
STILL WE SPEAK! A rally to support free speech and freedom of assembly
Friday, May 27, 6:00 p.m.
Union Square South, 14th St & Broadway, Manhattan
Come join us as we speak out against NYC's suppression of our rights to free speech and assembly. The NYPD continues to harass and arrest cyclists during group rides like Critical Mass and has recently revoked or denied permits for peaceful rallies, such as those of the anti-war demonstrators. Speakers include City Councilmember Gail Brewer, Civil Rights Attorney Norman Siegel and other distinguished speakers. Performers include Rude Mechanical Orchestra. For more information please visit stillwespeak.org
CRITICAL MASS (Manhattan)
Friday, May 27, 7 p.m.
Union Square North (or anywhere else)
Link up! Find other bikers and ride together for safety and strength. The most recent flier lists at least four starting spots. Choose one that appeals to you.
Lots, lots more after the jump:
REVEREND BILLY TIME'S UP! FUNDRAISER SHOW and AFTER-PARTY
Friday, May 27, 8:30 p.m.
St. Mark's Church, Corner 10th St. & 2nd Ave.
$10+ (nobody turned away)
Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Gospel Choir will raise money for TIME'S UP!, which is being sued by the City. The show will include a re-enactment in cardboard of the fateful night of April 27th, when cyclists threw their bikes over the St. Mark's fence. There'll also be food, music, silent auction and free valet bike parking.
BICYCLE FETISH DAY
Sat., May 28, noon --- 6:00 p.m.
Havemeyer Street between Grand and Hope Streets
(just over the Willamsburg bridge)
How HOT is your bike? Come to Williamsburg this Saturday and show it off! BICYCLE FETISH DAY is a chance for all of us celebrate our babies. The block will be closed to car traffic and open to all people who fetishize their beloved bicycles. There will be contests, jousting, food, music and prizes by local bicycle friendly vendors. TIME'S UP! will be rocking the tunes on our sound bike and whipping out some serious smoothies on our latest creation, Sweet Blenda, the Bike Blender.Representing their unique styles will be clubs such as; The Civic Riders Bicycle Club, The Moustache Riders, Classic Riders Bicycle Club, Puerto Rico Schwinn Club, Black Label Bicycle Club, Bicycle Works NYC, Bicycle Cherry, Foodswings, NYC Bikes.
AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST:::
Black Label's Banana Hammock party
Saturday, March 28th
The Chicken Hut (169 spencer and willoughby, bklyn)
$3/complimentary slim jims, hot dogs, baby carrots
djs porkchop, andersonic, dirty fingers
You MUST wear spandex. All you unisex uniform participants have your outfits already, everyone else find your old swim team speedos, bike shorts, tubetops, or get to the dollar store now.
Bicycle Film Festival
Posted May 12, 2005 by in Events
Tonight is the beginning of the Bicycle Film Festival, a long weekend full of pro-bike movies at Anthology Film Archives. Two highlights from tomorrow's listings are a short about Josh Kinberg's Bikes Against Bush project, a brilliant project from last summer (think sky-writing, but with a bike), and the much-anticipated Still We Ride, a documentary about the Bloomberg/NYPD crackdown against Critical Mass. From the advance:
On Friday August 27, 2004 just days before the start of the Republican National Convention, a massive police operation was underway. By the end of the night 264 people were arrested. It marked one of the largest mass arrests in New York City's history - and the arrested had done nothing illegal.For many New Yorkers, August was the first time they heard of what has become a monthly ritual for New York City’s bike community – a free-forming ride called Critical Mass.
Still We Ride is a documentary that captures the joyous atmosphere of this August ride before the arrests began and the chaos that followed. It recounts how this ride first started in San Francisco over 10 years ago and chronicles the police crackdown and resulting court battles in New York over the last seven months. The movie takes on issues of civil liberties, surveillance, the power of mainstream media, and the benefits of alternative means of transportation.
Check the full schedule here. Here's the essential info:
Thurs., May 12 - Sun. May 15
Anthology Film Archives, 32 2nd Avenue (at 2nd Street)
Critical Mass tonight
Posted April 29, 2005 by in Critical Mass Art
Critical Mass is tonight --- for folks in NYC, remember that there are now four meeting spots: Union Square Park, Washington Square Park, Tompkins Square Park, and Madison Square Park, all at 7pm. Hopefully we can divide and conquer the cops!
VR folks will be giving out our new, free stickers, just in from the printers last night. Still we ride!
