Letter from Garrick

[whistler]

Reposted from AGR email side:

11:30 pm Monday evening, June 27th.

Starting at least at dusk two US Forest Service law enforcement
vehicles have been sticking out into the roadway just past the
junction of Wind River Road and FS Rd 30 making it so there is only
one lane of traffic open straddling the median of the road. This is
the rou...te into the Rainbow Gathering,

The FS Leo’s are continually stopping and searching vehicles which are
headed into the Gathering. One vehicle at a time is being searched
while others are being allowed to pass by the barricade. When the law
enforcement team is done with the one vehicle, then they stop another.
Their occupants are being forced to stand in the night while their
belongings are unloaded and searched alongside the roadway.

This went on continually from at least dusk until 11:30 pm when the
“barricades” went down and the Leo team drove away. So for at least
three hours there was a constant scene of people along the roadside
entrance to the Gathering being rousted from their cars and searched.

Despite many assurances from FS personnel that ‘this year will be
different’ this past evening was Leo business-as-usual with harassment
in the dark for no particular decipherable reason, other than that one
happened to be the next vehicle driving in.

I have listened to the eyewitness reports from five people who
described this to me ‘live’ while watching vehicles being stopped,
occupants ordered out and gear, food, and personal belongings
searched.

So, dear friends,

If you are stopped and harassed on the way in, please tell the folks
at parking…tell them even if you’re not stopped so we can compile
statistics on how many unwarranted searches are occurring, percentage
of people/cars are being stopped etc.

And please double check your car’s lights and seatbelts, etc…

Don’t let this show of aggravated force keep you from coming Home to
The Gathering.

All my best – and we’ll see you soon,

Garrick