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[.GqueB.]

Rather curious to hear what GAF thinks about this:

At the start of 2014, two men were arrested for breakdancing on a crowded A train, which sparked a debate about the subway etiquette of breakdancing. Several people complained about breakdancers on the L train, and clearly cops have been reading the comments: two more men were arrested for breakdancing on a crowded L train at rush hour.

According to police, 20-year-old Xavier Fowler and a 17-year-old whose name hasn't been released were arrested last Wednesday around 6 p.m. on the L train near Union Square for breakdancing. DNAInfo reports, they were "blasting music and swinging their arms and feet near passengers' heads."

Back in January, police said the two men charged for breakdancing had "caused a hazard to themselves and others around them, and made excessive noise by blaring music from a stereo." Fowler and his accomplice were both charged with reckless endangerment (although Fowler's charge was reduced to disorderly conduct).
As we reported yesterday, arrests of subway vendors have increased more than 80 percent since last March; panhandler and vendor arrests were up 174 percent from this time last year.

Let this serve as another reminder that if you feel the urge to throw self-consciousness to the wind and jerk your body in rhythm while navigating our mass transit system, stick to doing it on the platform a fair distance away from the edge. The only physical movement we want to see on a train is synchronized leg kicks.

Sauce

For those that aren't familiar, for years kids have been dancing on trains in an effort to make a little cash on the side. They dance for a few minutes, ask for money, and move on to the next car. Problem is, they DO cut it a little close to hitting people sometimes and they can be a bit annoying since they are blaring music the entire time.

I'm on the fence about it personally. For one, they can be annoying but their shows aren't long enough to really cause any real trouble. But it's sad to me that they are getting arrested for trying to do something that's positive compared to their other choices. I actually used to step on the train as a kid so it's something I can relate to.

What say you GAF?

 

[Omegasquash]

No problem with it whatsoever. I'm never on any public transit with the expectation of peace and quiet...hell a distraction from the T is a welcome thing.

 

[Infinite]

It's annoying but not a criminal offense

 

[richiek]

I can sorta see how it's a problem, what with how the dancers do acrobatic manuevers on a moving train and the potential danger of hitting riders.

 

[entremet]

Why would anyone complain about those dudes? They're harmless.

 

[FStop7]

 

[Dude Abides]

Take the L, breakdancers.

 

[Mammoth Jones]

Good. Cut that shit out. It's an enclosed space and if you slip up you can fuck someone up. This isn't people doing the two-step. Dudes be back flipping, climbing poles, jumping off em. They fuck up it's gonna hurt someone bad. If they wanna dance there are plenty places to do it. Not in a packed train.

 

[zma1013]

Relevant

 

[.GqueB.]

Good. Cut that shit out. It's an enclosed space and if you slip up you can fuck someone up. This isn't people doing the two-step. Dudes be back flipping, climbing poles, jumping off em. They fuck up it's gonna hurt someone bad. If they wanna dance there are plenty places to do it. Not in a packed train.

They often aren't "packed" trains. Actually they're never really packed as that wouldn't be possible. And in all the years I've seen these shows, no one has ever been hurt. Not to mention they've toned the shows down as of late. It's mostly about hat flips these days.

 

[entremet]

Good. Cut that shit out. It's an enclosed space and if you slip up you can fuck someone up. This isn't people doing the two-step. Dudes be back flipping, climbing poles, jumping off em. They fuck up it's gonna hurt someone bad. If they wanna dance there are plenty places to do it. Not in a packed train.

"IT'S SHOWTIME"

"SHOWTIME SHOWTIME"

I still find the candy sellers more annoying.

@GqueB: I have seen them breakdance in packed as hell trains to the chagrin of the commuters.

 

[billeh]

Meanwhile in Chicago an L operator has fallen asleep twice while driving a train (with no charges to my knowledge!): Blowing through a stop the first offense and crashing into an escalator on the second.

I'll take the break dancers.

 

[.GqueB.]

"IT'S SHOWTIME"

"SHOWTIME SHOWTIME"

I still find the candy sellers more annoying.

They always have what I want (fruit snacks) so they're fine in my book. I don't like their spiel though.

 

[entremet]

They always have what I want (fruit snacks) so they're fine in my book. I don't like their spiel though.

Yep. Why do I need to pay you so you can stay out of trouble lol.

But they're being honest, before it was always about their fictional basketball team.

Just say I'm selling these to make an honest buck. That's it.

 

[commedieu]

Interesting, lets see what happens to a couple dancing the Charleston that gets arrested by the NYPD:

City Pays $75K To Couple Arrested For Dancing On Subway Platform

hmm

Last year, a Manhattan couple sued the city claiming they spent 23 hours in custody for dancing the Charleston on a subway platform. Caroline Stern and boyfriend George Hess had all their charges dropped, and now they've won their lawsuit: the city settled with them for $75,000. City Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. wasn't happy about the decision however: “At $75,000 a dance, the city’s going to go bankrupt sooner than we thought,” he told the Post. “Here, it looks like it was the taxpayers who got served.”

According to the MTA rules of conduct, it is disorderly conduct to "block free movement on a station, stairway, platform or conveyance"—there is no reference to dancing anywhere in the rules, and considering how much dancing goes on every weekend night, cops would really have to stretch that definition to include the shuffling of feet. And yet, the couple were initially charged with disorderly conduct for “impeding the flow of traffic.”

hmm

Stern said she was glad the ordeal was over, but “at the same time, with all the issues with the stopping and frisking people, I think the cops really have to be better trained in dealing with various situations. This was a huge waste of money and time for everybody involved.” Vallone, who heads the City Council’s Public Safety Committee, says the city is too quick to settle these types of cases: “Their policy is to settle regardless of the guilt and just throw taxpayer money out there,” he said.

But Donna Lieberman, head of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the city was clearly in the wrong in this case, and needs to learn from these suits: “For the city to settle a case, with a wrongful arrest and civil-rights violations for people who were dancing on the subway platform, speaks volumes about policing in the city of New York,” she told the Post.

Hope they sue as well.

 

[zma1013]

Meanwhile in Chicago an L operator has fallen asleep twice while driving a train (with no charges to my knowledge!): Blowing through a stop the first offense and crashing into an escalator on the second.

I'll take the break dancers.

Yes because clearly we have to choose one or the other.

 

[woodypop]

Were they dressed like this?

If so, I'd let it slide.

Spoiler

Even if they weren't.

 

[Shanlei91]

You can't do that on the L train. It's basically an amusement park ride with a ceiling. Only NY train I can't perfectly balance on without holding onto the poles.

My favorite train performer though is the guy dressed as Superman who does magic.

 

[.GqueB.]

Were they dressed like this?

If so, I'd let it slide.

Spoiler

Even if they weren't.

pfft I wish. They always dress down to appear "needy". I've always felt they should go the other way and dress the part (as above) and put on a show. Not sure if it would be better but it's what I want.

 

[slit]

It needs to make a comeback anyway.

 

[victreeb3l]

I dont mind them when the train is empty but when its close to rush hour and they try to get people to clear the middle of the carts when its getting packed, that shit really pisses me off.

 

[Ermac]

NY keeps takin L's

 

[Slayven]

Were they dressed like this?

If so, I'd let it slide.

Spoiler

Even if they weren't.

Greatest hospital scene ever

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l53Q1UXk2DE

 

[massoluk]

I don't really like these entertainers on the subway, particularly at rush hours. It's crowded enough without the performing artists' acts.

 

[Mammoth Jones]

They often aren't "packed" trains. Actually they're never really packed as that wouldn't be possible. And in all the years I've seen these shows, no one has ever been hurt. Not to mention they've toned the shows down as of late. It's mostly about hat flips these days.

If there are people occupying all the seats one should be swinging their limbs around wildly. Flipping hats in one thing but that's not what the article is about.

Regardless that shit doesn't belong on a train. People trying to commute. There are plenty of places in the city to see shit like that. A subway car shouldn't be one of them. I hope they continue to crack down on this nonsense.

 

[captmcblack]

So wack.

Panhandlers, bums, performers, musicians, sales people, homeless assistance people, random train preachers and so on...these are all facts of life and common occurrences on the subway. Real New Yorkers just deal with them - you ignore them if the shows or soliciting are bothering you that much. You turn your headphones up, go to another car, get on another train, or simply wait for them to leave.

You gotta arrest them for real? It's part of the culture here. I'm not saying that they're not annoying, or even quasi-dangerous (though I've lived here for 31 years and NEVER EVER EVER seen anyone get hit/injured/inadvertently caught in a close-call dance move)...but this is like arresting the churro dudes in the subway for selling unlicensed food, or arresting street performers for not having an official performance license. It's "technically" illegal, but nobody ever enforced it because this is New York City, and nobody actually was hard up about it except for trust fund kids trying to revise the city. Never seen these dudes in a legit packed train (like 4 train into Manhattan at 8:20AM by Atlantic Avenue packed) either.

 

[entremet]

Anyone knows what those guys giving away sandwiches are about? I've never seen anyone take their sandwiches or fruits. Seem like nice people, but not sure how effective they are.

 

[Zoe]

Interesting, lets see what happens to a couple dancing the Charleston that gets arrested by the NYPD:

A platform is a bit different, wouldn't you say?

 

[okno]

I've seen plenty of close calls on the A train for me to be okay with this. I don't normally mind them all that much, as I always have my headphones on, but when it's on a crowded ass train at 5PM I wish they would just hold off.

 

[Sol..]

Is this the footage of the crime?

 

[Mammoth Jones]

So wack.

Panhandlers, bums, performers, musicians, sales people, homeless assistance people, random train preachers and so on...these are all facts of life and common occurrences on the subway. Real New Yorkers just deal with them - you ignore them if the shows or soliciting are bothering you that much. You turn your headphones up, go to another car, get on another train, or simply wait for them to leave.

You gotta arrest them for real? It's part of the culture here. I'm not saying that they're not annoying, or even quasi-dangerous (though I've lived here for 31 years and NEVER EVER EVER seen anyone get hit/injured/inadvertently caught in a close-call dance move)...but this is like arresting the churro dudes in the subway for selling unlicensed food, or arresting street performers for not having an official performance license. It's "technically" illegal, but nobody ever enforced it because this is New York City, and nobody actually was hard up about it except for trust fund kids trying to revise the city. Never seen these dudes in a legit packed train (like 4 train into Manhattan at 8:20AM by Atlantic Avenue packed) either.

Of course "Real New Yorkers" ignore them. The fuck else is there to do? Waste time complaining to the closest cop who's gonna laugh and tell you to fuck off? But at the same time if I see them cracking down on that shit I'm gonna be cool with that. Not gonna feel there's any loss of culture. What makes NY....NY isn't the panhandlers or the idiot doing handstands on the subway or the guy jerking off in the middle of penn station.

 

[Schattenjäger]

Good - glad they are cracking down on this

The trains are crowded enough

 

[.GqueB.]

If there are people occupying all the seats one should be swinging their limbs around wildly. Flipping hats in one thing but that's not what the article is about.

Regardless that shit doesn't belong on a train. People trying to commute. There are plenty of places in the city to see shit like that. A subway car shouldn't be one of them. I hope they continue to crack down on this nonsense.

Often times that's the only place they can even do it. I just don't agree that they should be arrested. Fined MAYBE but arresting them for this seems silly to me. I don't feel it's enough of a problem to require a "crackdown". It's so over the top for something that can only be considered a mere 2 minute inconvenience.

 

[jorgeton]

Good.

I absolutely hate these subway breakdancers. The take over a whole car with their "dance moves" and are always millimeters away from kicking someone in the face. It's pretty stressful to have one of these guys dancing thisclose to you kicking their legs everywhere, while the subway car is rocking and rolling around. Almost hit me a couple of times.

 

[Slayven]

Is this the footage of the crime?

I laugh harder than I should.

 

[captmcblack]

Often times that's the only place they can even do it. I just don't agree that they should be arrested. Fined MAYBE but arresting them for this seems silly to me. I don't feel it's enough of a problem to require a "crackdown".

That's how I feel about it.

If the city's feeling a revenue pinch, write them a ticket and keep it moving. Otherwise, let it go unless and until people do something that merits that (like legitimately hurting/endangering someone). The whole point of them coming close to people and not hitting them is that they're doing it deliberately. They're trying to come close and make people go "holy shit" and then people give them a couple of coins or a dollar or something because holy shit they just did a crazy flip in place with only 2 person's worth of clearance in a moving train, and then chained that into a tandem move where their teammate linked together with them and did a synchronized dance around a pole.

Again, I get not being impressed, or even annoyed. I've lived here forever, so it's nothing for me to see stuff on a train anymore. But I don't think anyone needs to be arrested/handcuffed/arraigned/go through central booking for that.

 

[Mammoth Jones]

Often times that's the only place they can even do it. I just don't agree that they should be arrested. Fined MAYBE but arresting them for this seems silly to me. I don't feel it's enough of a problem to require a "crackdown".

Whether it is or isn't enough of a problem to require a crackdown is definitely debatable. But I'm just saying if they already going ahead and gonna crackdown on em then I don't oppose that. But I'm jaded as fuck. My days of being awed at the wonder that is NYC has long faded. Now I just try to get from point A to B without trying to sell me something or expose themselves.

 

[.GqueB.]

Whether it is or isn't enough of a problem to require a crackdown is definitely debatable. But I'm just saying if they already going ahead and gonna crackdown on em then I don't oppose that. But I'm jaded as fuck. My days of being awed at the wonder that is NYC has long faded. Now I just try to get from point A to B without trying to sell me something or expose themselves.

That's fair. I've lived here for 30 years and while I don't smile and cheer whenever I see that stuff, I also don't see a reason to be upset about it. You learn to tune that stuff out.

 

[Fugu]

Of course "Real New Yorkers" ignore them. The fuck else is there to do? Waste time complaining to the closest cop who's gonna laugh and tell you to fuck off? But at the same time if I see them cracking down on that shit I'm gonna be cool with that. Not gonna feel there's any loss of culture. What makes NY....NY isn't the panhandlers or the idiot doing handstands on the subway or the guy jerking off in the middle of penn station.

Have you ever considered that it means a whole lot more to them that it does to you, and that it sounds absolutely ridiculous to deprive people -- often poorer people at that -- of a way to show off their talents and grow as a performer because it annoys you?

Also, admit it or not, performance art in public is a part of the culture of New York. A big part. I am a frequent visitor and if there's one thing that is different from where I live, it's the dude on the subway playing the trombone.

 

[Not Spaceghost]

Mean while in Russia, street performers perform on the streets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciJJBjK6EUc

 

[luna_s]

This was the first thing I saw on my first ever visit to NYC, happened on the AirTrain - was quite the culture shock to me.

 

[.GqueB.]

Mean while in Russia, street performers perform on the streets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciJJBjK6EUc

Lol, what the hell?

 

[wildfire]

These guys are really talented though the background music they choose to play sucks.

I agree that their moves count as reckless endangerment. You shouldn't perform some of the moves they do within 4 inches of sitting people. This doesn't come close to matching the Charleston settlement another poster brought up. They weren't doing somersaults or pole climbing(with push off maneuvers for the most skilled) like these guys (mostly kids) do.

I'm surprised to hear they do this close to rush hour. I usually don't travel the subway at that time. That is very annoying and selfish.

Of course "Real New Yorkers" ignore them. The fuck else is there to do? Waste time complaining to the closest cop who's gonna laugh and tell you to fuck off? But at the same time if I see them cracking down on that shit I'm gonna be cool with that. Not gonna feel there's any loss of culture. What makes NY....NY isn't the panhandlers or the idiot doing handstands on the subway or the guy jerking off in the middle of penn station.

I feel for you if you actually witnessed that last one.

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

They often aren't "packed" trains. Actually they're never really packed as that wouldn't be possible. And in all the years I've seen these shows, no one has ever been hurt. Not to mention they've toned the shows down as of late. It's mostly about hat flips these days.

Yep. Why do I need to pay you so you can stay out of trouble lol.

But they're being honest, before it was always about their fictional basketball team.

Just say I'm selling these to make an honest buck. That's it.

they still doing the basketball team thing.

That's how I feel about it.

If the city's feeling a revenue pinch, write them a ticket and keep it moving. Otherwise, let it go unless and until people do something that merits that (like legitimately hurting/endangering someone). The whole point of them coming close to people and not hitting them is that they're doing it deliberately. They're trying to come close and make people go "holy shit" and then people give them a couple of coins or a dollar or something because holy shit they just did a crazy flip in place with only 2 person's worth of clearance in a moving train, and then chained that into a tandem move where their teammate linked together with them and did a synchronized dance around a pole.

Again, I get not being impressed, or even annoyed. I've lived here forever, so it's nothing for me to see stuff on a train anymore. But I don't think anyone needs to be arrested/handcuffed/arraigned/go through central booking for that.

i'd rather have no culture than get kicked in my face.

Have you ever considered that it means a whole lot more to them that it does to you, and that it sounds absolutely ridiculous to deprive people -- often poorer people at that -- of a way to show off their talents and grow as a performer because it annoys you?

Also, admit it or not, performance art in public is a part of the culture of New York. A big part. I am a frequent visitor and if there's one thing that is different from where I live, it's the dude on the subway playing the trombone.

nobody's being deprived of anything. go dance in the streets but inside a subway should be a no go. or aren't we as residents of the city of NY not allowed a modicum of quiet and safety in our commute? do we have to always be catering to someone that has never seen it?

 

[massoluk]

I commute between NJ and NY, the local favorite used to be Teddy who collect money for organization for the homeless (riiiight) in Jersey City. I haven't see him for year now, wonder if they cracked down hard on him. He even got his own facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/PATH-Train-Teddy/144233226130

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGgL0jZfcNE

 

[aparisi2274]

I dont really care... I've seen so many different acts on the subway, that I am blind to it now...

I've seen:

Doo wop singers
Mexican mariachi bands
rappers
poets
break dancers
acoustic rock n roll singers

Most of the time, I will give money, especially if they are pretty good, but most of the time I just ignore them..

I will however say that the kids who breakdance on the train and use the various poles as props are dangerous. I've seen them come within an inch or two to hitting someone in the face, and the person is none to happy about it.

 

[commedieu]

A platform is a bit different, wouldn't you say?

The code of conduct is the same for the platform and the conveyance. MTA is more than likely going to update it to specifically, no dancing, to avoid further lawsuits.

 

[Zoe]

The code of conduct is the same for the platform and the conveyance. MTA is more than likely going to update it to specifically, no dancing, to avoid further lawsuits.

Different charges. They were charged with "impeding the flow of traffic".

 

[commedieu]

Different charges. They were charged with "impeding the flow of traffic".

Which didn't stick, because its nonsense. So if MTA prohibits dancing, they'd probably be better off. And originally you asked if its different, because they are on a platform. No, its no different, by the MTA's code of conduct which applies to the trains and platform.

 

[Zoe]

Which didn't stick, because its nonsense. So if MTA prohibits dancing, they'd probably be better off.

The couple wasn't at risk of harming anyone like the breakdancers were. The cases have no bearing on each other.

reckless endangerment != impeding the flow of traffic