Boston - On July 31st, members of Sworn Enemy and Walls of Jericho, who were scheduled to perform at Lyons Group Club Axis in Boston, were told that they could not take the stage wearing Boston Beatdown t-shirts. They were ordered to remove it under penalty of being ejected from the club. Furthermore, they were told that any references made to Boston Beatdown, or local performing artists Blood For Blood and Death Before Dishonor would result in the show being terminated. During this time, a member of Walls of Jerichos touring crew was told by a uniformed Police Officer that if he did not remove, or turn inside-out, his Boston Beatdown t-shirt he would be ejected from the club and arrested.

We attempted to get clarification on this incident. We contacted the Lyons Group and they denied their presence at that event. Lyons Group told us to contact Clear Channel. We did and were told by Clear Channel to contact Lyons Group for more information. Neither group offered any information regarding details of the incident.

In a separate incident, several members of a notable hardcore band were refused admittance into a Lyons Group venue simply because they were covered in tattoos. The club quickly disguised their blatant discrimination, claiming that the individuals posed threats to the club. These individuals bore no affiliations to either Boston Beatdown or FSU or any of their respective members.

On July 14th, 2004, in what can only be described as Gestapo style tactics, the City of Boston in conjunction with the Lyons Group Corporation launched its first offensive in their all-out campaign to remove Bostons hardcore and punk rock element from the city's streets and night clubs.

Witnesses tell us that shortly after 11pm that Wednesday night, undercover Police Officers and a self identified Federal Agent walked through the front doors of the Paradise Night Club in Allston and entered a widely popular punk rock music night, known as 'Blackout Bar.' The officers, led by Lyons Group representatives, walked through the busy nightclub singling out those individuals they suspected of being friends of or affiliates of members of the Boston Beatdown Organization and Friends Standing United (FSU) - a local brotherhood of hardcore and punk rock kids solidified during their battle to rid Boston of its neo-Nazi element in the early 1990's.

Undercover Police Sergeant Daniel Keener and self identified Federal Agent John Blake began shoving, one by one, all the hardcore kids they had singled out from the bar into a lit area on the sidewalk outside. Sgt. Keener then ordered those individuals to lift their shirts, and despite objection and protest by the individuals on their own behalf, Sgt. Keener proceeded to photograph them with a Polaroid camera.

When asked to see his police badge or obtain his badge number, Sgt. Keener, who originally identified himself as a member of Boston's Gang Taskforce, refused. Instead, he threatened to arrest each of the individuals if they opened their mouths again. After being photographed, Sgt. Keener issued verbal trespassing warnings to all the singled out hardcore kids for all Lyons Group property. He then added to the warning by stating that should those individuals be seen on the public streets or sidewalks in front of any Lyons Group establishment they would be arrested immediately.

While the Lyons Group continues to deny their involvement in these incidents, citing the Attorney General as the force behind them, obvious facts suggest otherwise. If, in fact, the Lyons Group was not involved with the roundup at the Paradise, why then did it consists of a Police Detective working out of his area, a self identified federal agent who just so happens to be on the Lyons Group payroll, the Lyons Group General Manager of clubs Axis and Avalon, and the Lyons Group General Manager of Sonsei, a restaurant located in Boston's Fenway area? If, in fact, as Lyons Group representatives claim, the Lyons Group had no part in the police presence at their venues, why then were trespassing warnings only handed out for their property? If, in fact, the Lyons Group has implemented no influence on the Police Department, why then did a Police Officer inside a Lyons Group establishment threaten a hardcore kid with arrest if he did not remove his Boston Beatdown t-shirt?

It is time to put an end to this corrupt union. It is time to take a stand. It is time to let the city know we will not tolerate these practices any longer.

Crosscheck Records would like to thank all the bands and labels that have continued to show their support for us. Free Speech is very important, and we feel that we deserve an explanation when these rights are taken away.

If you have additional questions please contact April or Joel at Crosscheck Records, 323-663-8073.