Elavi stages demonstration against peddlers Bill

Date: Mar 10, 2009

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http://www.elavi.co.uk




Elavi Stages a series of performances outside the BBC as a demonstration against the injustice of the Manchester Peddlers Bill.

After being prosecuted twice for selling his own music on the streets of Manchester, Elavi, is upping the stakes is his media campiagn to highlight the plight of the peddlers across the country. Peddilng is way of life, a career for those who choose it and a lively hood for many of britains law abiding citizens. However, it is being threatened and restricted by increasingly restrictive laws and policies brought out by many a city council.

Having felt the brunt of manchester’s heavy handed tactics in dealing with peddlers to remove their presence and rights to operate on the busiest shopping street in Manchester, Elavi feels he is called to stand up and expose an injustice affecting peoples freedoms. He says;

“As a black male in this country the plight of the peddlars is close to my heart in a sense as I regard selling my music on the streets a cultural way of life which has brought many an american artist from obscurity to centre stage and made them very successful. The certiface I hold, once respected, is now being attacked and I am being branded a criminal. Is this justice?”

The series of performances that Elavi intends to do are a direct call to the media to help highlight this issue. He is going to play on the door step of the BBC because he believes the BBC is the strongest voice the people have. “The BBC is for us, the common people. so I believe if I stage these events the BBC will help me and give a voice to the voiceless amongst us.” This is the heart of the matter really - people and real small businesses;

“I work on the streets alongside many a career peddlar and the current climate of decreasing freedoms and increasing restrictions is making life and business very hard for them. For example, in Blackpool, a tourist town on the west coast, the council themselves have banned peddlars and put council employed peddlars on the streets who will work hard long days passing massive profits back to the council and will only take home a small wage for their efforts.”