East Tennessee State University’s student government officials urged students Tuesday to call and write Johnson City’s city commissioners to protest the city manager’s decision to reject any requests to hold a Ludacris concert at Freedom Hall Civic Center.
The Oct. 27 hip-hop concert was planned as the major Homecoming event for students. It was canceled Monday for lack of a venue.
“We’re trying to make a statement,” said Student Government Association President JR Husmillo. “We want to say, ‘Hey, this is our event.’ We can decide for ourselves what is appropriate and what is inappropriate.'”
Husmillo said the SGA had a “good faith agreement” with the city to hold the event.
City Manager Pete Peterson said that while he had not seen an official venue agreement, he did make the statement that he would not allow Ludacris to perform in Freedom Hall because of “security concerns.”
Peterson said he had heard reports that the act has been at the center of crowd control problems in Montgomery, Ala., and in Minneapolis, Minn.
“This was a difficult decision,” Peterson said. “But I’ve got to consider the health, safety and welfare of the community.”
However, Husmillo said he was unable to find corroboration of those particular incidences and that he believed the city manager was receiving complaints and pressure from church groups who opposed the performer’s lyrics.
“[City officials] have kept us out of the loop,” Husmillo said. “They’ve been getting pressure from these outside community members that we don’t know about.”
Husmillo and other SGA officers urged students to show concern for the handling of the situation by writing letters to the editor of the Johnson City Press, calling city commissioners and attending the city commission meeting Thursday night.
SGA officials said the protests were a matter of principle and worried that students would be forced to seek approval from the city government for all concerts because there is no on-campus venue available for that purpose.
“Whether you agree with Ludacris’s lyrics or not, the city has taken it away from us,” said Bailey Garrett, SGA’s secretary of public relations. “It’s about more than just you.”
Others voiced concern about having to pay Ludacris for the cancellation at such a late date.
The concert would have cost $85,000 plus additional expenses, but the contract was not signed by ETSU officials, said University Counsel Edward Kelly.
“There is no contract,” Kelly said. “Until there is a contract signed, we are not obligated [to pay Ludacris].”
SGA officials said they would plan other events for the night of the canceled concert, but that those events could not, because of time constraints, be of the magnitude of the Ludacris concert.

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