Faux lobbyists present bribes

A noisy and colorful piece of street theater played out at the Capitol Tuesday as mock "lobbyists" for forgotten causes stormed into the Capitol rotunda to offer bribes to lawmakers.

The highly theatrical event was organized by local activist groups Visual Cacophony and Nuclear ReACTION and was intended to call attention to the influence real lobbyists for big money interests in the state have over the Legislature.

Visual Cacophony co-founder and event co-organizer Ashley Sanders said the group had come in "a spirit of irony and resistance."

"How many of the terrible bills that passed the Legislature this session would have passed if people hadn't been giving each other sweet deals in backrooms and over lunch?" Sanders said.

Cheering, clapping and chanting "Power to the people," several dozen participants marched through the building's south entrance and placed a pile of loose dollar bills, Monopoly money and jars full of coins on the floor in the center of the rotunda. Each jar and bill had a note attached identifying a neglected issue — renewable energy, equal rights, clean air and water, universal health care and money for schools.

The group then recited a mock pledge of allegiance. "I pledge allegiance to the money and to the Legislature for which it stands, one state, under corruption, with liberty and justice for some," they said in unison.

Kate Savage, another co-organizer of the event, said she wanted people to recognize that we live in "something called a democracy" and yet people with money have more say in that democracy than people without money.

"We're trying to highlight something that's absurd by being absurdist ourselves," Savage said.

Many in the predominantly young crowd were dressed in creative costumes representing the different issues they felt weren't getting enough attention from their elected representatives.

Savage was dressed as the Dr. Seuss character The Lorax, representing the need for more open spaces and more care for the world's ecosystems. Tristan Call was dressed as a sunflower to represent the neglected issue of clean power.

Salt Lake City resident Michelle Huggins came dressed as a bottle of beer. She said her mother told her about the event and urged her to come and highlight the need for "normal American alcohol laws" in the state.

Tom Tilton came wearing a surgical face mask and carrying a broom and a duster. He said he was there to push for clean air, clean water, clean energy and "clean politics" — issues he said he works for on a regular basis.

"As long as you keep showing up eventually you will have an effect, somebody eventually will take notice," Tilton said.

E-MAIL: dservatius@desnews.com