Instead, the dance-scene regulars had work to do: There's a nationwide fight against a pending Senate bill, the awkwardly named Reducing Americans' Vulnerability to Ecstasy Act, or RAVE Act (get it?). The RAVE Act, which amends a 1986 "crack house law," would hold property owners and promoters responsible if they "knowingly and intentionally" let a venue be used for selling or doing drugs. The bill paints a sinister portrait of raves and dance clubs as drug dens where Ecstasy use is encouraged--and where promoters exploit dancers' drug use by selling pricey water and glow sticks. While it's a no-brainer that drug use is a problem at raves, the bill raises constitutional problems by targeting the people throwing the event, rather than those using or selling the drugs.
Essentially, if the bill passes, promoters and property owners can get in serious trouble (a $750,000 fine, or 20 years in prison) if someone does Ecstasy or other drugs at their show. (By selling the expensive water and glow sticks, the bill's sponsor argues, promoters demonstrate that they know there's drug use at raves.) And raves aren't the only thing at risk: Events from small rock shows to large stadium concerts are threatened.
Senator Joseph Biden, the Delaware Democrat sponsoring the bill, has said the RAVE Act will let federal prosecutors go after rave promoters "who seek to profit from exploiting and endangering young lives."
While backers of the bill say innocent promoters have nothing to worry about, the ACLU points out that the RAVE Act's terms--"knowingly," for example--are too loosely defined. A promoter could be busted for using slang terms for doing Ecstasy on a poster, like "rollin'," if a prosecutor argues that the promoter knew that term would attract drug users. (Seattle's Hempfest posters, which often have pictures of pot, are a prime example.) And the ACLU says the act is a threat to free speech if it leaves promoters too afraid to host events.
The newly formed Northwest Late Night Coalition (NWLNC), the group that called the September 18 meeting, says the RAVE Act could shut down the dance scene in Seattle and across the country by scaring promoters. "The RAVE Act is absolutely ridiculous," NWLNC leader Heide Hayworth told the crowd. "And this is just the start of anti-rave legislation. They've singled us out as the reason Ecstasy is in this country."
The coalition held a recent rally at Westlake Center, and NWLNC is networking nationwide with other groups (like L.A.'s Rock the Vote) to oppose the bill. Hayward is scheduled to meet with Senator Maria Cantwell's office, and hopes to persuade the senator to change her position on the act (Cantwell voted for it in a June judiciary committee meeting).
If the attendance at Wednesday night's meeting is any indication--it was the NWLNC's highest turnout so far--Hayward has a lot of support. She was impressed that so many of her fellow dance-music enthusiasts were willing to get political. "It's really controversial for a lot of us," she explains. "We don't want to sell out and totally go public [with our subculture]. But we have to make an effort to tell the world who we really are."
