Critical Mass

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Critical Mass in Vancouver, 2005

Critical Mass is an event typically held on the last Friday of every month in cities around the world where bicyclists and, less frequently, skateboarders, inline skaters, roller skaters and other self-propelled commuters take to the streets en masse. While the ride was originally founded with the idea of drawing attention to how unfriendly the city was to bicyclists,^[1] the leaderless structure of Critical Mass makes it impossible to assign it any one specific goal. In fact, the purpose of Critical Mass is not formalized beyond the direct action of meeting at a set location and time and traveling as a group through city streets.

[edit] Background

Critical Mass rides are self-organized, non-commercial and non-competitive, and they operate with diffused and informal decision-making, independent of leaders. They are often also unofficial, foregoing permits and official sanction from municipal authorities. Typically, only the meeting place, date, and time are fixed. In some cities, the route, finishing point, or attractions along the way may be planned ahead. Participants have differing purposes for the event, such as celebrating their choice of the bicycle for transportation, ^[2] and enjoying car-free social time on city streets. ^[3]

Critical Mass in London 2006

Critical Mass rides have been perceived as protest activities. A 2006 New Yorker magazine article described Critical Mass' activity in New York City as "monthly political-protest rides", and characterized Critical Mass as a part of a social movement; ^[4] and the UK e-zine Urban75, which advertises as well as publishes photographs of the Critical Mass event in London, describes this as "the monthly protest by cyclists reclaiming the streets of London".^[5] However, Critical Mass participants have insisted that these events should be viewed as "celebrations" and spontaneous gatherings, and not as protests or organized demonstrations.^[6][7] This stance allows Critical Mass to argue a legal position that its events can occur without advance notification of local police.^[8][9]

Critical Mass rides vary greatly in many respects, including frequency and number of participants. For example, many small cities have monthly Critical Mass rides with fewer than twenty riders, while on the opposite extreme, in what have been the largest events using the name Critical Mass, cyclists in Budapest, Hungary hold only two rides each year on 22 September (International Car Free Day) and 22 April (Earth Day). They attract tens of thousands of riders. The April 22, 2007 Budapest ride participation was generally estimated at 50,000 riders.

[edit] History

The first ride took place on Friday, September 25, 1992 at 6 P.M. in San Francisco. At that time, the event was known as "Commute Clot" and was composed of a couple dozen cyclists who had received flyers on Market Street.^[1]>

Shortly after this, some participants in that ride went to a local bicycle shop for a screening of Ted White's documentary Return of the Scorcher, about bike culture overseas. In that film, American human powered vehicle and pedicab designer George Bliss noted that, in China, both motorists and bicyclists had an understood method of negotiating intersections without signals. Traffic would "bunch up" at these intersections until the back log reached a "critical mass" at which point that mass would move through the intersection. The term caught on and replaced Commute Clot as a name at the time of the second event.^[1]

By the time of the fourth ride, the number of cyclists had increased to around 100 and participation continued to grow dramatically, reaching about 1,000 riders, on average.^[1]

The name was soon adopted as a generic label by participants in similar but independent mass rides that were either initiated in various locations around the world at around the same time, or had already existed before 1992 under other names. It is estimated that there are Critical Mass-type rides in more than 325 cities to date. The term "Masser" is sometimes applied to frequent participants.

[edit] Structure

Critical Mass differs from many other social movements in its rhizomal (rather than hierarchical) structure. Critical Mass is sometimes called an "organized coincidence", with no leadership or membership. The routes of some rides are decided spontaneously by whoever is currently at the front of the ride, others are decided prior to the ride by a popular vote of suggested routes often drawn up on photocopied flyers. The term xerocracy was coined to describe a process by which the route for a Critical Mass can be decided: anyone who has an opinion makes their own map and distributes it to the cyclists participating in the Mass. Still other rides decide the route by consensus. The "disorganized" nature of the event allows it to largely escape clampdown by authorities who may view the rides as forms of parades or organized protest. Additionally, the movement is free from the structural costs associated with a centralized, hierarchical organization. In order for the event to function, the only requirement is a sufficient turn-out to create a "critical mass" of riders dense enough to occupy a piece of road to the exclusion of motorized road users. Authorities in New York, California and Oregon have expressed concern with the difficulty of coordinating with the riders, due to the lack of leadership.^{[10][11] [12]}

Detail from the November 20, 1992 flyer by Joel Pomerantz which introduced the concept of corking.

The city of New Haven includes the event in its city-published Green Map. ^[13]

[edit] Corking

Because Critical Mass takes place without an official route or sanction, participants practice a tactic known as "corking" in order to maintain the cohesion of the group. This tactic consists of a few riders blocking traffic from side roads so that the mass can freely proceed through red lights without interruption. Corking allows the mass to engage in a variety of activities, such as circling in an intersection, or lifting their bikes in a tradition known as a Chicago hold-up. The 'Corks' sometimes take advantage of their time corking to distribute flyers.

Critics argue that the practice of corking roads in order to pass through red lights as a group is contrary to Critical Mass' claim that "we are traffic", since ordinary traffic (including bicycle traffic) does not usually have the right to go through intersections once the traffic signal has changed to red, unless issued with a specific permit or residing in jurisdictions where bicyclists have this right (such as the Idaho, USA Bicycle Law ^[14]). Corking has sometimes translated into hostility between motorists and riders, even erupting into violence and arrests during Critical Mass rides.^[15]

[edit] Criticism

Critical Mass has been the subject of criticism from authorities and motorists in the various cities in which it takes place.

[edit] Conflicts with motorists

Critics have claimed that Critical Mass is a deliberate attempt to obstruct automotive traffic and cause a disruption of normal city functions, asserting that individuals taking part in Critical Mass refuse to obey the vehicular traffic laws that apply to cyclists the same as they do to drivers of other vehicles.^[16]

In the San Francisco Bay Area, there have been several incidents of violence during Critical Mass events.^[17]

On the evening of March 30, 2007 in San Francisco, toward the end of Critical Mass, Susan Ferrando of Redwood City, California claimed to have found herself in the middle of a group of bicyclists and tried to drive through them resulting in hundreds of bicyclists surrounding her minivan while her 11 and 13 year old daughters watched from inside. Ferrando denies striking a cyclist but claims they banged on the sides of her car, "keyed" the paint, and threw a bicycle through the rear window of the vehicle, causing $5,300 in damage.^[18]

On May 11, 2007, a similar incident occurred in Berkeley, Calfornia. According to a Bicycle Civil Liberties Union press release, a "motorist with his wife deliberately ran into the side of the monthly Berkeley Critical Mass bicycle demonstration"^[19] and caused approximately $3,000 worth of damage to bicycles.^[20] However, the driver and two third-party witnesses told police that the bikers threw their bicycles under the vehicle. Subsequently, Critical Mass participants pounded on the hood and windows of the car and the windshield of the vehicle was shattered.^[21]

On July 27, 2007, while the Chicago ride was heading to the Spindle in Berwyn, IL, an allegedly drunk driver plowed into the mass while attempting to flee the scene of a previous accident. 10 year old Will Healy, who was riding with his mother and sister, was directly hit by the car. Healy flew up onto the hood of the car, but was not severely injured. Several other bicyclists were injured or had their bicycles damaged while attempting to move out of the way of the car. The driver, Robert Rogers, 34, of Maywood, IL was quickly apprehended by police who were riding with and monitoring the group.^{[22] [23]}

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, in April 2007, requested that Critical Mass riders "police themselves." "It does the bicycle-advocacy community no good to have people that are aggressive and dispirit the entire movement,” Newsom said. “I would encourage the bicycle coalition to say, ‘Look, we don’t put up with this, enough is enough.’”^[24]

[edit] Conflicts with authorities

Police confiscated a bicycle

In 1997, the Mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown, was asked by a journalist at a press conference how he planned to control Critical Mass. The Mayor was quoted in the press as threatening the riders with arrest, along with various belittling of bicyclists. The reaction and extensive press coverage grew into a confrontation at the July 25, 1997 ride. The local newspapers had published a route, although many riders were hesitant about—or flatly against—cooperation with it. On Friday the Mayor addressed the crowd at the Embarcadero (San Francisco) meeting place but was shouted down. The crowd of approximately 7,000 bicyclists quickly split into many parts, each being chased or monitored by police units, including helicopters. This resulted in extensive turmoil throughout the downtown area and many arrests and bicycle confiscations.

Bennett Hall, a professional photographer, claimed to have witnessed a San Francisco police officer writing a citation for a bicyclist who had committed no offense. While photographing the event, Hall further alleges that the police then improperly arrested him and seized his camera. Another pedestrian attempted to take the camera to bring it to the San Francisco Chronicle, but he was also arrested.^[25]

After the US 2004 Republican National Convention coincided with the August 2004 [[|New York|New York City]] Critical Mass, many court cases resulted regarding the legality of the ride, confronting issues of whether police have the right to arrest cyclists and seize their bicycles, and whether the event needs a permit. In December of 2004, a federal judge threw out New York City's injunction against Critical Mass as a "political event."^[26] On March 23, 2005, the city filed a lawsuit, seeking to prevent TIME'S UP!, a local nonprofit, direct action, environmental group, from promoting or advertising Critical Mass rides. The lawsuit also stated TIME'S UP! and the general public could not participate in riding or gathering at the Critical Mass bike ride, claiming a permit was required. A documentary film, Still We Ride shows the nature of these bike rides before and after the police took notice.^[27][28][29]

In September 2005, Critical Mass in London found itself in conflict with the law when the Metropolitan Police gave out notices announcing a requirement that the organisers of the mass provide a route six days before the event. In addition, they stated that the Mass may be restricted in the future, and arrests would result if their orders were not followed. The threat was quickly moderated when politicians and cyclist groups voiced objections. The following ride, that of October 2005, was tremendously well attended, with estimates approaching the figure of 1200 participants. There was a long stop in Parliament Square, part of the Government's exclusion area in the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005. However, this event also led to a particularly slow and cumbersome ride which brought some debate from London cycling groups.

Another consequence of the police notice was that a participant sought a declaration from the High Court of England and Wales that there was no requirement to notify police about the Critical Mass rides. After what the judgment describes as a "friendly action" in which the claimant and the police agreed not to seek damages, the Court ruling^[30] on June 27, 2006 agreed with the claimant that the Critical Mass rides were exempt from notification under Section 11 of the Public Order Act 1986.

On March 14, 2007 the issue was taken to the Court of Appeal by the Metropolitan Police. On May 21, 2007 the court ruled in their favour^[31] by a majority of 2 to 1.^[32] Friends of the Earth, who are helping Critical Mass with the legal action, have now indicated that the case will be going to England's highest legal authority, the House of Lords.

Police in Oregon and New York have cited concerns that Critical Mass may delay emergency vehicles, such as ambulances, due to the traffic disruption.^[10][11] An expert retained by bicyclists suing New York City gave the opinion that such claims are without merit.^[33]

On July 27, 2007 in Vilnius, Lithuania, police took five critical mass participants into custody, including two minors, for not following orders to disband. At least two of them later reported to have been beaten and injured by police officers. A court case is set to take place in August. ^[34]

On August 31, 2007 in Minneapolis, police arrested nineteen critical mass participants, including two minors.^[35] The adults were reported to have been arrested on suspicion of rioting, a gross misdemeanor. ^[36]

Also, on August 31, 2007, seven riders in the Chicago Critical Mass were arrested on charges of obstructing traffic and disobeying police. The seven were held overnight. ^[37]

[edit] Reaction of other cyclists

Some bicycling advocacy groups have expressed concern that the controversial nature of Critical Mass and altercations with motorists could weaken public support for bicyclists.^[11] Though it does not condone incidents of violence and rudeness, the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition credits Critical Mass with spotlighting bicycle issues and aiding their efforts in advocating for cyclists.^[1]

[edit] Critical Manners

In San Francisco, a splinter event known as "Critical Manners," was created as a response to Critical Mass. Critical Manners rides through the city on the second Friday of the month, but in contrast with Critical Mass, the riders obey all traffic laws, such as stopping at red lights and signaling.^[38][39]

There are also conversations about starting Critical Manners in Portland Oregon^[40]

[edit] General Impact

Although there is no consensus as to the overall effect of the ride on street conditions for cyclists or on public perceptions of bicycling, a few examples show the extent to which the ride has permeated various subcultures:

The name of the event has been subjected to word play in many contexts, ranging from advertising campaigns for commercial products to numerous other public events,^[41] some with only remote similarities to Critical Mass. The extensive news coverage of San Francisco's July 1997 ride spawned an international celebration of bicycling, called Bike Summer.^[42] The Rand Corporation produced a white paper entitled "What Next for Networks and Netwars?" analyzing the tactics of the ride, as part of an evaluation of decentralized decision-making for potential military battlefield use.^[43] The ride has generated books,^[44] documentary films,^[45] murals,^[46] and other secondary artifacts.

[edit] See also

• Clothing-optional bike rides including Critical Ass and World Naked Bike Ride
• Reclaim the Streets
• Time's Up!
• Critical Mass History
• Critical Mass Chronicle
• List of rides
• Critical Mass (English Wikipedia article)

[edit] External links

• Critical-Mass.org: A listing of Critical Mass rides worldwide
• Critical-Mass.info: A directory of Critical Mass rides worldwide (regularly updated)
• Glossary: Definitions of Critical Mass terminology (from San Francisco)
• Critical Mass History
• You Never Bike Alone Feature documentary looking at cycling and Critical Mass in Vancouver, Canada.
• Times-up!

[edit] References

This article or parts of this article are based on the Wikipedia article Critical Mass licensed under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, version 1.2 or later. A list of the authors can be found here: [1]. You can help to improve the article.