COLUMBIA, 8/3/10 (Beat Byte) -- The National Bikers Roundup, an annual motorcycle rally of mostly black bike enthusiasts in town this week, could drop $10 million into our sales-tax starved coffers, some estimates say.But local news organizations are portraying rally participants as invading outlaws, traffic snarlers, motorcycle thieves, police resource depleters, road hoggers, trespassers, and potential gang bangers, with nary a rumble about the H.O.G. (Harley Owners Group) Rally later this month, which could bring even more bikers to town.Normally agog over tourism , Columbia has pushed (with subsidies in some cases) the "economic impact" of Roots and Blues, Show Me State Games, Tour of Missouri, Lakota Cup bicycle race, Youzeum, Missouri Theatre, downtown festivals, Boone County Fair, Fred Parry's Wine and Cheese Fest, Tiger Football, college students, and even grossly overpaid MU coaches.But for the National Bikers Roundup, economic optimism has turned to media angst. Stay at home! Stock up on groceries! Take cover, in your biker gang storm shelters! The latest headline: "Roundup may disrupt voting," about Tuesday's primary elections.Why all the hand wringing? Columbia Daily Tribune publisher Hank Waters suggested a racial element last January.Formerly known as the National Black Bikers Roundup, "the two-wheelers are a convention of black cyclists," Waters wrote in an op-ed entitled, Bikers: An invasion of infidels? "This fact will worry some of our least tolerant types, and I daresay this unspoken racial sentiment might have stimulated some of the criticism of the approaching bikers."Racial sentiment now blaring from the page, alarming headlines have for weeks topped stories that suggest trouble. Here's some wording from just two recent Trib articles about the rally:policeintoxicatedofficerscrashinvestigatorswarnedbig concernaccidentaccidentsmotorcycle theftsvictimtrespassingColumbia police anticipatesecuritynegative stererotypesnegative rumorsproblem-causerssecurityout in forceworst-case-scenarioCapt. Gary GermanBoone County Sheriff’s DepartmentMaj. Tom Reddinprominent nationwide security firmOfficer Jessie Haden"He said the biker rally is incomparable to anything the sheriff’s department has ever been asked to secure."Police may have busy Night Out.This year, the biggest night for Columbia Neighborhood Watch also happens to fall on the first day of the National Bikers Roundup, meaning some law enforcement officers are going to have to forgo attendance at the neighborhood events.Roundup may disrupt voting
Police ready for bike rally crowd: Officers will take on extra shifts all week.http://www.columbiatribune.com/ news/2010/ jul/30/police- ready/
Deputies, private security set for rally site: Bikers expected to hog highways.
Biker rally traffic cause for warningArea gears up for biker rally: Sheriff worried about security.Bikers: An invasion of infidels?ALSO SEE:National Bikers Roundup explodes stereotypes
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The Columbia Heart Beat
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No matter how far we think we hav come we are always held back by the 'pink' n 'brown' issue. I don't think it will ever change. It seems to be the way of the world. WHEN WILL PEOPLE REALIZE IT'S NOT THE COLOR OF THE PERSON THAT MAKES THEM WRONG IT'S THE PERSON AND THE THINGS THEY DO!!!!!!
ReplyOh for heaven's sake. Not everybody in Columbia is incapable of critical thinking. We all see life through the prism of our own experience. We have choices. What kind of world do you want in Columbia. I have stopped buying the stupid pandering newspaper. They are going out of business.