Letter: Don’t promote businesses on our sidewalks

Friday, July 27, 2001 | 4:42 a.m.

Tuesday's Sun carried a story about the use of sidewalks by businesses to promote their wares. In the story, people from companies that distribute promotional pieces about nude dancers are claiming that the sidewalks are public property, and due to First Amendment rights, can use the sidewalks to hand out their sales pieces.

Alan Feldman of MGM MIRAGE put the whole issue in perspective by commenting that "commercial speech is not an expression of opinion," negating their claims of First Amendment rights. He could not have said it better.

But if the sidewalks are public property, shouldn't the potential users ask taxpayers for permission to use them? From another perspective, if these businesses want to reach potential customers shouldn't they operate like other taxpaying entities and use direct mail, telephone soliciting or ads in newspapers and billboards?

Claiming that sidewalks are the legal domain for the distribution of flyers, the sale of T-shirts, food vendors and ticket scalpers is a slap in the face to the writers of our Bill of Rights.

Keep our sidewalks free of all business ventures. That is what malls, swap meets, and shopping centers are designed to accommodate.

MIKE MILLER

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