This year’s Madison Halloween, like others in the recent past, will prove a bit more involved a celebration as the phenomenon of State Street on Halloween has become a nationally-recognized festival of hedonism. We ask the police to strike the proper balance between safety and control such that this partying may continue.
The model adopted by the Madison police during last year’s Mifflin Street Block Party, a situation similar to Halloween, seemed to work well — throngs of drunken young people partying en masse. Their live-and-let-party approach allowed revelers to partake in a legendary event without the accompanying irritations of an overbearing police presence.
The police displayed a similar attitude during the Final Four celebrations of three years ago. Thousands of fans packed the street, thoroughly awash in red, white and liquor. Few major incidents were reported as police made their presence universally known but selectively felt.
What we believe separated this example of safe and sane partying from the rioting of last year’s Halloween lie, at least in part, with last year’s attempt by police to dislodge the mob.
Experience outside Madison has shown that when police push too far, when they become too aggressive, their actions can hurt rather than serve the cause of safety. We ask the police to keep this in mind as they formulate strategies for dealing with the drunken mob sure to congregate on State Street.
Other steps being taken by the city — such as restricting the use of glass bottles on State Street to eliminate the possibility of their becoming weaponized — are pragmatic solutions to the problems a huge, drunken crowd presents.
We, along with the rest of Madison, are hoping for a safe, sane and memorable celebration this year. We ask that the police strike the balance necessary to ensure this occurs.
