Pubdate: Thu, 14 Aug 2003 Source: Hamilton Spectator (CN ON) Copyright: The Hamilton Spectator 2003 Contact: http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/181 Author: Susan Clairmont PLAN TO BAN SNOOP DOGG RASH Rapper May Be Crude But He's A Publicity Guru Police say it's about safety. Others say it's about censorship. Either way, it's the kind of publicity gangsta rapper Snoop Dogg thrives on. Hamilton's finest are doing their damnedest to keep the hip-hop mogul from performing at Copps Coliseum next Tuesday. If they had their druthers, the American artist wouldn't even make it over the border. "As long as he's not breathing Canadian air, I don't care what Snoop does," says Detective Sergeant Rick Wills, head of the vice and drugs unit. Police have asked the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration to prohibit Snoop from entering the country on the basis of his criminal record, which includes felony convictions for drug trafficking and possession of weapons. "This gentleman is someone we should not let into the country," says Deputy Chief Tom Marlor. "This person has a very sordid profile" and "a propensity for violence." Police are concerned Snoop will attract concert-goers who use drugs, carry weapons and have a bad attitude. It's not the Hamilton fans they worry about so much as gang members from Buffalo and Windsor who might trek here for the show. Officers here have talked with police in some of the U.S. cities where Snoop has toured recently, including Denver and Chicago. Knives and guns have been ditched outside the venues once fans realize they'll be searched. Assaults have taken place, cars have been reported stolen and drug charges have been laid. So far, only 2,500 tickets have been sold for the Copps show which was expected to draw 10,000. Marlor says he has a duty to be pro-active by doing what he can to keep Snoop out of Hamilton. But he's also realistic. He knows his chances of success are slim to none. Police have tried to stop concerts in the past and it's never worked. In the summer of 1975, then Chief Gordon Torrance tried to ban a Pink Floyd concert at Ivor Wynne Stadium. He told The Spectator that "drug takers" and bikers might show up and there could be "immoral acts" and damage to property. "If this was a case of selling tickets to the young people in our own areas, I would have no qualms about it. But these tickets are being sold over a wide area and it is my information that many of them will be going to Americans. There is no way the police want to be kill-joys in this affair, but we have to think of the safety of our citizens and their property" The concert took place as scheduled with 60,000 fans. Neighbours complained about noise, litter, drinking, drug use and urinating in public. There were no violent incidents. In 1990, Hamilton police initially refused to provide security for a Public Enemy concert. Deputy Chief George Frid said the rappers' lyrics were "inflammatory toward authority" and he was concerned the concert at Carmen's banquet hall would attract gang members from Toronto, Buffalo and Detroit. The concert went ahead, with 20 police officers present. The Spec reported the event was so quiet, many officers spent much of the night relaxing with cups of coffee in a side room. It's unlikely Snoop will be stopped at the border. While some convicted felons -- especially violent offenders -- are denied access to Canada, Snoop can, and probably already has, been granted a Minister's Permit allowing him into the country to perform. Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration officials say they cannot speak about Snoop's situation because of privacy laws. But promoter Simon Garner of Next Presentations says Snoop's people have ensured him the paperwork has been looked after and the rap star will indeed be breathing Canadian air very soon. He is playing a concert in Montreal the night before he comes to Hamilton and will shoot a video in Vancouver the week after. Snoop has been in Canada 35 times before, says Garner. He is not staying overnight in Hamilton and will not likely party at any local clubs, another issue police were concerned about. Garner says he does not share the police department's concern about violence at the Hamilton concert. "This is not the United States," he says. "Life in Canada is different. I don't see any reason why he shouldn't be allowed to perform in Canada." Deputy Chief Marlor is quick to point out that banning Snoop is an issue of public safety, not censorship. But he later goes on to say the performer's misogynist lyrics cause him concern. And Wills, from vice and drugs, points out some of Snoop's lyrics are anti-police. So what gives? Is this about Snoop's criminal past, or is it about the songs he sings? Let me be honest -- I can't stand Snoop Dogg. I agree he's misogynist. I also think he's crude and angry and his music sucks. But, more importantly, I don't think it's the job of the police to decide what music the public should hear and what concerts can come to town. They may be the police, but they're not the thought police. It's a slippery slope from banning Snoop to banning violent movies or controversial books. Every concert has security concerns. I'm not denying this one will have its share. And I am well aware a 24-year-old former McMaster University student was shot and killed after a hip hop concert at Ontario Place last month. Though security precautions should and will be taken at the Snoop concert, it's rash for police to be any more heavy-handed than that when Snoop has been in Canada before without trouble. To be sure, Snoop is no angel. His real name is Calvin Broadus and he grew up in Los Angeles where he was a member of the Crips gang. He's been jailed, has been shot a bunch of times and was once charged with murder, but the charge was eventually dropped. Recently, three of his bodyguards were arrested after taking Snoop to an awards gala in Hollywood. They were riding in a bullet-proof van equipped with gun ports and loaded with firearms. Even more recently, he was slapped with a lawsuit after he allegedly baited a 17-year-old girl and her friend to flash their breasts for a video shot in New Orleans during Mardi Gras last year. He allegedly offered the girls pot and Ecstasy in exchange for the peek. Shots of the bare-breasted girls standing beside Snoop appear on the cover of his Girls Gone Wild Doggy Style video and DVD. They are suing him for improperly using their images. But Snoop is much more than a gangsta and a creep. He's also produced his own porn, launched his own line of clothes, runs his own record label, records his own weekly radio show that airs on 35 stations around the world, has starred in his own TV show, appeared in a number of successful Hollywood movies and, oh yeah, sold a lot of albums. It's that last part that convinces John Elder, the guy responsible for booking Snoop at Copps, that he has good reason to bring the celebrity to Hamilton. "I'm not in the censorship business," he says. "I'm a little surprised at the reaction of the police. It isn't their role to decide who should play here." Plenty of artists -- including the recently lauded Rolling Stones -- have come to perform in Canada even though they have criminal records, says Elder. Copps staff are working closely with police, the concert promoter and with Snoop's people to ensure it will be a safe concert, he says. Inspector Bob Buck says there will be 35 to 40 uniformed officer inside and outside the building as well as numerous undercover officers. Schedules are being shuffled so no overtime will have to be paid. As well, Copps is paying for six additional special duty police officers to work the show. The same security firm that worked the Rolling Stones' SARS concert will be there and immigration officials will also be on hand. In the end, all of this will likely amount to nothing more than free publicity for Snoop. Or as John Elder of Copps Coliseum told me yesterday: "I hope that whatever you put in your column tomorrow, it will stimulate ticket sales." - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin