Photographers to MTA: Suck It!

Jacob Dobkin

Published Jun 6, 2004

Modified Mar 6, 2008

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Jacob Dobkin

Published Jun 6, 2004

Modified Mar 6, 2008

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Gothamist was there for today's protest against the proposed ban on photography in New York City subways. The protest started at Grand Central, which was appropriate, as it is a frequent target for both photobloggers, tourists, and terrorists. A quick count revealed that reporters and press photographers outnumbered protestors by about five to one. The protestors themselves were a motley bunch: off-duty reporters in beat-up sneakers, unshaven urban explorers, and three or four detached looking photobloggers lingering at the edges.

After mugging for each other for twenty minutes, the group proceeded to the subway, where they rode the 6 downtown to 14th Street, the L across to the West Side, the C up to 42nd, and the Shuttle back to Grand Central again. Highlights of the ride included a near altercation with police at Union Square (well, they actually just asked some of the photographers to stop leaning against the barricades, but their tone was impolite), intimidation of a shy conductor trying to close the doors on the L ("Get him! He's trying to shield his face!"), and endless, endless, endless photographing of other photographers. Still, the point was made: if a group of 50 photographers rampaging through the system is this harmless, surely the ban on photography is a stupid, ill-conceived, wasteful, and unnecessary measure. [Related: Matt Haber's Village Voice article on the ban.]