Opinion

Partying peacefully

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Last year, nearly 40,000 people crowded Mifflin Street for the famous annual block party. To the revelers’ credit, the event went rather smoothly. No major incidents of criminal activity were reported, and unlike the 2002 event, no sexual assaults occurred. Much of the praise for last year’s peaceful, fun-loving day goes to the Madison Police Department and residents of Mifflin.

After rioting plagued the 1996 block party, safety became a major concern. In light of that event, we call on students and police alike not to take the annual party for granted. It is made possible by cooperation between a community of students and law enforcement officials, and should the situation turn sour this year, city regulators may find themselves forced to shutdown future parties before they start. It is up to students and Mifflin Block Party attendees to take care that the party remain safe in 2004.

The two biggest answers to maintaining this stability is cooperation and communication. We applaud City Council President Mike Verveer in his efforts to highlight these needs. Last night he hosted a meeting (an annual tradition since 1996) for law enforcement officials and residents of Mifflin Street to discuss how best to regulate the block party. These open lines of communication contribute to the success of the party by ensuring residents and law enforcement officials act together in pursuit of safety.

Though this preparation has proved vital in maintaining peaceful partying, we question whether the new four keg limit proposed by the police department is necessary or even practical.

While we agree that upward of 40 barrels per house is a recipe for disaster, limiting four kegs per house is simply not plausible. The sheer amount of police power required to enforce such a rule would detract from the overall mission of keeping the street orderly and safe. And for the past seven years, the large majority of students have displayed a considerable ability to conduct the event in a safe manner while interacting cordially with police.

We call on the police to continue their respectable treatment of students as adults. While working with residents to create practical and agreeable policies, police must also sit down with students to reasonably sort out their motivations for this added regulation.