________________________________________ From: Matt Plummer [matt at mattmattmatt.com] Sent: Friday, September 25, 2009 5:16 PM To: trombone-l at samford.edu Subject: [Trombone-l] Justice for Jazz Artists! NYC Rally and March -- trombones wanted
hi everyone,
On Tuesday, Sept. 29, Justice for Jazz Artists! (J4JA) is holding a rally and march -- a campaign addressing the plight of New York City's jazz musicians, who receive no benefits from the clubs they perform in. Benny Powell, Bob Cranshaw, Jimmy Owens, Sean Lyons, Bernard Purdie will be playing -- Amiri Baraka will speak.
For those of you that just tuned in, since 2006, the Justice for Jazz Artists! campaign and Local 802 of the AFM have repeatedly tried to engage NYC jazz clubs in constructive dialog to secure retirement benefits for working jazz musicians, to no avail.
J4JA! successfully lobbied for a tax break that would go to jazz musicians' retirement payments, at no cost the clubs; and yet almost none of the top NYC jazz clubs will even discuss the issue with us -- these clubs include the Village Vanguard, the Jazz Standard, Birdland, the Blue Note, Dizzy's Club Coca Cola, and (le) Poisson Rouge. These clubs are now enjoying the benefits of a tax break that MUSICIANS lobbied for, and they have failed to hold up their end of the deal.
1. PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION: http://www.justiceforjazzartists.org/petition/
2. If you live in NYC, ATTEND THE RALLY THIS TUES.: Sept. 29, 2pm, at Judson Memorial Church at 55 Washington Square South (West 4th Street) in Manhattan. We need you to be there. And SPECIFICALLY, we need trombone players for the march. Bring your horn! http://justiceforjazzartists.org/2009/09/sept-29-j4ja-rally-in-nyc/
Benny Powell will be performing -- as well as Jimmy Owens and Keisha St. Joan, Bob Cranshaw, Sean Lyons, Bernard Purdie. Speakers will include Amiri Baraka, Bob Cranshaw, Local 802 Vice President Bill Dennison, and many more.
We're holding this rally to put public pressure on the clubs, so that they *do the right thing*. After the rally, we will march to the clubs and deliver our petition with almost 2,000 signatures of professional musicians, demanding that the clubs direct the forgiven tax dollars to musicians' pension payments -- a tax break that J4JA lobbied for, and that the clubs are now enjoying.
thanks, Matt Plummer trombone / bass trombone / NYC http://mattmattmatt.com/