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Dear Officials:
I am disappointed to learn that the Liberty Medal event has
joined the ranks of other expressions of public sentiment that
are no longer publicly available.

For whatever reason is attributed to this narrowing of public
access, I don't feel that it is in the spirit of our country to
do so.

To pretend that this event is open to the public is a sham.

Please improve information on public availability of tickets.

Dear Officials:

I have important memories of hearing the stirring words of
Vaclav Havel , Jimmy Carter and others speak at the Liberty
Medal ceremonies . then last year was forced to perch on a ledge
across the street to hear Colin Powell's voice echoing in
coherently through a sound system while city police officers
idly chatted in the street in front of me so I heard even less
of this man's words. Why wasn't it widely publicied how to get
tickets?

I didn't even try this year and now realize what a mistake that
was. In this country, ONE SHOULD BE PROuD TO FIGHT FOR ONE's
RIGHTS, like our forefathers and mothers taught us. If the
times force us to have tickets, TELL CITIZENS WHERE TO GET THEM
IN ADVANCE AND PUBLICIZE THIS INFO WIDELY.

NEXT YEAR I WANT TO BE AT THE LIBERTY MEDAL PRESENTATION.

Sincerely,
Hedy Cerwinka
Philadelphia, PA

Dear Officials: It would be hard to find a worse example of
democracy denied than the Liberty Medal "private party" -- open
it to the people or cancel it. Don't spend out tax dollars to put
the Liberty Medal celebration behind bars!

thank

Dear Officials: I am sick and tired of you political people
forgetting about the public. You know, the one's you made and
continue to make false promises to. Or as I like to call it
LIES, LIES, LIES. Considering that you all are the people that
beg us to vote for you. Don't you think that maybe it's time
that you give a little something back to the public? And if any
of you think that you have or/and continue to do so, please fill
me in............

Respectfully,

MKB

Dear Officials:
I was really surprised and disappointed to find out that tickets
are required to see tomorrow's Liberty Medal presentation. I was
planning to attend and was looking forward to hearing the Mayor
and Justice O'Connor speak. Until I received an email from
hallwatch.org, I assumed that I would be able to attend. I
fondly remember the thrill of seeing Nelson Mandela and
President Clinton. It's ironic that the Liberty Medal has
secretly become a private event. Please change this policy and
make the Liberty Medal a public event next year. If numbers need
to be limited, then create a way for the average citizen to
obtain tickets. This should not be a political perk for only the
well connected. This is also a very bad public relations move
for tourists in our city tomorrow. Doubtless there will be
hundreds or even thousands of tourists searching Independence
Mall for a view of the ceremony. They will be angry and
disappointed that they have been mislead into thinking that this
was a public event.

Dear Officials:

I just learned that a ticket is required to see the presentation
of the Liberty Medal at the new Constitution Center. I am
horrified. I have a group of friends and family that agreed to
get up early and meet me for the ceremony this 4th of July. We
were all very inspired that the medal was to be presented to a
woman we admire and feel is deservent of such a distinguished
honor. I am not sure of how to get tickets at this point or if
any will be available by time I figure it out. There was no
mention of a ticket being required in the Welcome America
broshure I have or on the website.

I am very disappointed that we may not be able to see the event
up close and would request that information be shared more
freely in the future.

Concerned citizen who votes,

Jennifer Forbes-Nicotera

Dear Officials:

I hope that you take the only time remaining to contact the
media, as a last minute measure, and have them inform the public
about any tickets remaining for admittance to the Liberty Medal
Celebration. After that, because I am sure all tickets have
been sold to those who were informed, you should hold another
celebration, for the public only. This time use the media to
your advantage, just like you usually do.

Also, an apology would be really appreciated for those who would
have liked to attend this event, but found it really hard to
attain information.

One more thing, could somebody please replace Bonnie Grant with
a event/public affairs person who really cares about the public,
not only here job perseverance?

Thank you.

Dear Officials:
You have a responsibility to include the public in events such
as this. This country is founded on the concept of public
participation. Looks like another blown call for the Street
administration.

Dear Officials:

I have attended many of the past presentations of the Liberty
Medal, well over half, and now find that I can no longer attend.
Each year we would stroll along the streets of the Historic
District and end up in front of Independence Hall, along with
hundereds of others, to cheer the reciepent as well as all of
those who participated in the ceramony. Sadly, we were unable
to get tickets and find ourselves shut. Shame on whoever made
this decision!

Dear Philadelphia City Officials:
Greetings! Looking forward to seeing you (collectively) at the
Liberty Medal Awards Ceremony. I'm more than honored to support
the fundamental principles of freedom through assembly with my
friends and neighbors at this most auspicious event.
What's that, we'll need tickets?
That's Ok, where do I procure them?
Hello?
Hello, anybody there?
Hello?

Dear Officials:
Last year I tried to go to this ceremony, and I was surprised to
find that I had to have a ticket. I was very disappointed
because I thought it was open to the public, I was excited to
see Colin Powell (who I respect greatly), and it was advertised
as part of the Welcome America festival. Now I learn that many
others were hood-winked, too, and that is very wrong.

I hope that you will agree, and I want a response from you about
this. Let the public come to this event, or at least, publicize
how to get inexpensive tickets better. If only "dignitaries"
are allowed to go, then it's not really a celebration of
liberty. And if tickets are expensive, then it should not be
held at Independence Hall because it is a national park that
belongs to the people.

Sincerely,
Stacy Wiegman

Dear Officials:
Please explain why, for the 2nd year in a row, the Liberty Medal
will be bestowed without wide public participation. Requiring
a 'by ticket only' ceremony, WITHOUT CLEARLY INFORMING CITIZENS
THAT THEY WILL NEED TICKETS IS IN THE REALM OF DIRTY TRICKS.

Dear Officials:

Again, I am not terribly surprised to see that except for our
tax revenues, citizens are, once agin, the forgotten ones.

Although I suspect that this issue is not just a city-
jurisdiction issue, the city is the only place to lodge any kind
of protest. Freedom means many things, and being able to
participate in civic events is one such meaning.

It has become an article of faith among corporate and government
greedheads believe that any thing they contribute money to
becomes - hey presto! - an exclusive arena for their schmoozing,
their egos and their self-promotion. This is neither a
Democratic or a Republican disease. It is a Philly-Pennsy
disease.

That being said, I must repectfully ask that the tickets of
privilege become festive confetti and all the people - great and
small - be allowed to celebrate this nation that includes us all
(it's in the contract, check it out:
www.constitutioncenter.org). Thank you for considering our
humble petition.
Josh Vincent

Dear Officials:
I am writing with great disappointment and anger about the
recent handling of the Liberty Medal award.

We have been attending this public ceremony since the very first
year, through small crowds and oppresive humidity, because we
thought it was our duty as residents of this city to support our
place in history. Through the years of Mayor Rendell's tenure,
we were encouraged to and even pleaded to attend. We were good
citizens.

Last year we were outraged to be forced to stand on Walnut St,
looking through the barred fence beyond as Colin Powell received
his medal and gave a very resounding speech. Yes, things are
different after September 11th. We understand that. But given
an entire year to fine-tune the new procedures, it appears that
the public is once again shut out of the ceremony for 2003.
Very few publications have mentioned the need for tickets. I
have called the Mayor's office looking for tickets. I have
called Council President Anna Verna's office looking for
tickets. Nobody has any, and it appears that there never were
any tickets publicly available anyway.

If security is so strict, rent the Downtown Club across the
street from Independence Hall, and have your own private party,
and be glad that you don't have to mix with those pesky public
citizens out there. All of you governmental and corporate
officials can have a grand time with each other. But if you are
presenting a public award on public property, using publicly
paid police officers to guard you, then you should invite us,
and invite us 'in', not just to stand a block away to look at
your backs. The deception and the 'haves/have nots' mentality
is a very wrong message to send, especially on this national
holiday of citizen independence.

After years of being encouraged to attend in person, I feel
great disrespect about this. What group of killjoys could have
done this to such an inspirational event? I do not want to
watch it on Channel 6. I do not want to read about it in the
Inquirer. I do not want to put Sunoco gas in my car so that I
can go somewhere else during the event.

The Liberty Medal award is the crowning event in a week's worth
of activities. All of the facepaintings and outdoor movies and
amateur talent shows put together don't add up to anything like
the Fourth of July in front of Independence Hall, in person.
You are taking away our opportunity to participate in the
founding of our government. I await firm answers as to why this
is happening again, and what remedies you suggest for improving
this for next year.

Dear Officials:
Its a situation reeking of shockingly bad taste to host a
liberty medal ceremony (with famous guests from Washington D.C.)
and surreptitiously exclude the general public of Philadelphia.
How typical! How completely in-line with how other cities expect
us to behave! I am very disappointed.

Our city is about to become thrust into the spotlight as a
primary tourist destination--we may receive a million additional
visitors per year. Its no wonder--our new museum has much to say
to American citizens in these days, when most of our national
ideals are under review.

So, how does it look when our own city government gives lip-
service to these very ideals? We continue to alienate people and
businesses from taking up residence in Philadelphia with these
abysmal civic attitudes. If our own leaders dont take pride in
our city, and our people, no one else will!

Dear Officials:You blew another opportunity to include the electorate in public events. I can't wqait until Nov.

Dear Officials:
I really thought that we as a people had come further than
this. However, YOU, our publicly elected officials, have seen
fit to make this ceramony an exclusionary event. If tickets
are needed to help control the size of the crowd, just say so!
It seems that YOU just want to use the event as a means to
reward a selected few. Is this intention of the LIBERTY
MEDAL? Freedom to participate only for the selected elite.

Dear Officials:
Please free the Liberty Medal presentation. Let it go back to
what it was before political favors reared it's head. It would
also be nice if the Marion Anderson Award was given back to us.
The ceremonies on Broad Street were delightful. Pretty soon the
common people will be excluded from all the fun events. Are you
officials working on a way to limit access to the fireworks?

Dear Officials:

I am dismayed about the lack of communication on how the
general public can obtain tickets to the Liberty Metal ceremony
on July 4th. If the event is not open to the public than the
Liberty Metal is one big oxymoron.

Todd Schwartz

Dear Officials:
The feedom medal is a great idea. Let's open the ceremonies up
so that everyone why is interested in attending can do so. Ted
Reed

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