Robert Lederman learned a
valuable lesson Saturday: Having the law on your side doesn’t guarantee you won’t
get smacked with a summons—or five—and hauled down to the pokey, after the street
artist was arrested at High Line Park for selling his artwork without a permit. A move
both Lederman and the federal court system say violates his First Amendment
right to freedom of speech.
Park Enforcement Patrol officers arrested Lederman after High Line employees called the New York Police Department to complain about him displaying his art at the 14th Street section of the High Line around 3:30 Saturday afternoon.
Lederman was issued 5 summonses by officers for vending without a park permit, failure to comply, disorderly conduct, failure to comply with directions of officers and unauthorized vending. Officers then handcuffed Lederman and took him to the 6th Precinct where he was released around 6:30 Saturday evening.
This is the 42nd time Lederman has been arrested for selling his street art in public places, but he has never been convicted. And this is his first arrest since 2001 when a federal appeals court ruled street artists selling their work in public places are protected by the First Amendment right to freedom of speech, and therefore they don’t need permits to do so. Lederman has been part of five federal lawsuits regarding street artists’ First Amendment rights since 1994. All of which have ruled on the side of the street artists.
“It’s clearly a contempt of court case,” Lederman said. “There is no controversy over whether or not I’m allowed to sell there. It’s a fact. It’s settled law that I or any other artist can sell up there. That’s the law. That’s not an opinion. The city doesn’t have a choice. They don’t get to choose whether they want to follow the federal court decisions or not. They’re binding."
After nearly nine years without an arrest for his art, which consists of scenes of New York City, Lederman was more than a little shocked by Saturday’s scene on the High Line.
“This guy acted like he caught Jack the Ripper,” Lederman said about the arresting officer. “At this time, basically we’ve been getting along pretty well with Mayor Bloomberg and with the parks commissioner, and it’s really shocking that they would do this frankly. I went up there to show my art. I had no idea that this was going to happen. I wasn’t looking to challenge the High Line. I was there like the other people really appreciating it.”
Arrests like the one Saturday helped spur Lederman to co-found the street artists’ rights group Artists’ Response to Illegal State Tactics 16 years ago and helped transform Lederman from purely an artist to an activist as well.
“I’ve been doing this since I was 12 years old,” he explained. “Selling my art on the street is how I make my living. It’s a First Amendment right, and like quite a few people, I wasn’t looking to be an activist. But when you find yourself in this situation, you get initiated into being an activist. Over the past 16 years when all these arrests took place, it sort of confirmed an interest in standing up for this First Amendment freedom. Not just for myself but for other people. There are 1,500 member of my organization. You’ll find them in every park and on every street. I’m not talking about vendors. I’m talking about artists selling paintings, prints, photographs and sculptures. They’re all members of this group.”
And now Lederman is preparing to head back to court for his cause. He said he plans to sue the High Line, the parks department and the city of New York over Saturday’s arrest.
“The parks department and
the High Line people have their own agenda for commercializing this park, and
they’re hoping to nip street artists in the bud by arresting me,” he said. “Frankly
I think they made a tremendous mistake. I’m not looking to make a big commotion
on the High Line. I would prefer not to have to do that. I certainly don’t need
to go back there to make the point. They made the point already. They gave me
five different summonses. I’m not going to have to prove anything to the judge
about what they’re intentions were and continue to be. I plan to go back there
to sell my art if not to protest, and I have a right to. I intend to exercise that
right.”
