Letter from Rhys Pareja, Promoter for Friday the 13th Meek Mill Show at The Congress Theater
By chicago-pipeline at April 18, 2012 | 10:14 pm | Print
[Ed note: As previously reported, there was an altercation among two patrons at The Congress Theater, 2135 N. Milwaukee, this past Friday which resulted in a concert being disrupted by an alderman, police commander, a fire inspector, and over 20 police officers. No arrests were made. We shared a letter from the venue's owner, Eddie Carranza, about the events. Rhys Pareja, the promoter who put the show together, wrote in and requested that we share the following letter].
My name is Rhys Pareja, and I was the promoter for Friday 13, 2012 show at Congress Theater. I read before my show, that Alderman Joe Moreno, was already promoting bad racial press on my artist and on black people. He sent a letter to the community saying that bringing my artist to the Congress Theater was dangerous. There was an artist who was 16 years old with an ankle bracelet, who was granted permission from the judge to work. He was done performing and on his way home before 10:30pm. They were SPREADING RUMORS through the community saying my artist were unsafe and troublesome to the neighborhood.
I have NEVER had issues of this magnitude anywhere!!
Here’s what really happened from one of hundreds of people who were outside the venue and saw EVERYTHING!!
There was a two person altercation inside the theater that security had broke up. Both parties were kicked out and left the theater immediately. NO POLICE WERE NEEDED.
My team provided 25 well trained security 
guards IN ADDITION to the Congress Theaters 25 professional in house security staff including off duty police officers. After the fight had been broken up, a Hispanic lady was stopped in a vehicle opposite of Congress Theater. She was not a patron, she had no intention of coming into the theater!! It was a random traffic stop!!! There was a dispute between the the police officer and the lady in the car that he didn’t seem to have under control. Then the officer called for back up.
The next thing I know Alderman Moreno showed up including 20 police cars and I’m being told that the WHOLE BLOCK is now closed due to a 10-1 Extreme Emergency police call!!! They were not letting any one in or out of the theater!! My customers were turned away by the hundreds, being told by police that the show had been shut down!! I lost around $75,000 towards my show because they decided to over react to something completely unrelated to MY SHOW!! Then the Fire Marshall shows up because he was told the show was sold out and over capacity. Then the Fire Marshall comes out realizing that the show was no where near being sold out and reopened the doors AFTER 2 HOURS.
By that time I had lost hundreds of customers!! Then I started getting calls asking if there was a shooting because it was all over twitter!! There were so many rumors going around by that time via social media that people who had planned on coming to the show decided to stay home!
My artist were unable to get to the venue because the block was SHUT DOWN !! My show was delayed 2 hours!!! My reputation as a promoter is being RUINED by all the rumors and issues that happened Friday night. I lost respect from artist and managers that I have worked with for years. Not to mention my customers!!! I am still not over dealing with people demanding refunds and complaining about the issues they encountered getting into the venue Friday night.
Like I said, I ATTENDED the hearing at City Hall Tuesday and Police Commander Linda Flores and Alderman Joe Moreno called a 10-1 extreme emergency when it was exaggerated for the issue at hand. They made a mess of my concert. Before they shut us down there were lines of people waiting to present there tickets and get searched thoroughly. Customers understand it takes time and to provide a safe environment. There were 3 neighbors that seem to be family, complaining at the hearing all repeating that they were ‘scared’. I don’t know what they were so scared of? Black people? Rap music? There was more then enough TRAINED security hired for the evening.
I would like a resolution and an investigation to what happened and all the money I lost from Alderman Joe Moreno and Police Commander Linda Flores shutting my show down for 2 hours!! It seems like they are out to ruin the Congress Theaters reputation. I chose to work with this venue because of its great Nation wide reputation and large fan base. Lots of things are at stake here including a lot of money and my reputation!!
Rhys Pareja
Letter from Ald. Proco Joe Moreno to 1st Ward Community, below, was originally posted to this message board:
Because of this situation, I will be paying (out of my own pocket) for two (2) community representatives to patrol the area around the Congress Theater. Secondly, the 14th District Police Department will be providing additional resources to the area around the Congress before, during, and after the show. Lastly, after I notified the Congress Theater of the background of this performer they have stated that they “have added additional security presence and have more on call.” Alderman, 1st Ward
2058 N Western Ave
Chicago, IL 60647
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8 Comments
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I understand your complaints. To an extent. I agree that the alderman is trying to ruin Congress Theater. It’s a shame that your concert got caught in the cross fire. It really is. However, there is nothing in that letter saying anything negative about “black people”. To make it about race is to perpetuate a stereotype that already exists and you and everyone else should be working towards eliminating. I’m sorry if you feel this incident was race driven. I don’t. I feel that the alderman has picked beef with that venue and the timing of your concert fell at a very inopportune time. Don’t make it about race. Please.
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Michelle-
The letter doesn’t have to have the N word in it. The underlying motive for the alderman writing the letter is racist. He wrote it because a BLACK hip hop artist was performing in the community and he thought that it warranted a warning to the community. Racist in my book.-
No, he wrote it because there have been some awful events at the Congress lately and a mitigating force (increased security) takes a little heat off of him.
The artist in question has an ankle bracelet and thus isnt a law-abiding guy – not to mention he’s 16, the same age as the kids who attacked, raped, beat, and left for dead the 18 year old girl on New Year’s Eve.
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Let’s get one thing clear. The artist had nothing to do with the police action and was only used as a smokescreen to create the hostilities commented by the Chicago Police Department. The Congress had 25 security people in place many of which are off duty Chicago Police Officers. In addition one of the other acts had an additional 25 security members on duty at the Congress. You should have seen the look on the 14th district commanders face when given the name of the main security contact for future events at the hearing this Tuesday. The name given was a Chicago Police officer from another police district in the city. Word is there is discontent in the 14th district about what happened and Chicago Police Department Department is investigating.
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The 1st Ward has a rogue alderman with a vendetta against a private business. Obviously he arranged for the shit storm of cops that swooped in and shut down the performance and the neighborhood. He set the tone for everyone to be on edge when he sent out his racist warning letter to the community.
When one of his political operatives, spying at the scene, told him that two people had been ejected from the venue, he and the beat sergeant called for the theatrics.Yet another childish ploy to slander the Congress’s reputation and another corrupt attempt to drive an honest tax paying business out of town.
The motives is clear. The alderman and his political lackeys have used a few neighbors as tools to put undue pressure on a business that he would prefer sell out to larger corporate interests. He’s looking for more contributions to his campaign that would come with a corporate giant at the helm of this fine venue. Its Chicago political machine corruption that should be investigated.
If the FBI is not already looking into this alderman and his blatant disregard for the law, exploiting tax payer resources to create a police lockdown, and criminal shakedown of a private business, they should. There are laws to prevent this type of extortion and the feds should be putting this punk alderman under the microscope.
Let this be a warning to others that may want to open a business in Chicago. If the exorbitant taxes, endless regulations and crime don’t break you, the alderman and the political machine will.
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Well said, Metal Man. As expressed in the earlier letter from Carranza, however it happened- whether a vendetta or racial profiling, it did, and nobody won on Friday. Fans. Neighbors. Community. Promoters. Artists. Loss of money. More chiseling away at Congress’s reputation that is clearly being impacted by an alderman who just wants to make this business better and is showing his concern in an odd way. I can’t imagine Scott Waguespack or Manny Flores showing up on the scene and having a tantrum on their cell phones as witnesses watch and no commotion is happening other than what was happening in the alderman’s head. Is it common for aldermen to pay for additional services like extra security people out of their own pocket? Did he not trust our police force and the 50 licensed and trained security workers? The police probably were wondering if they should be dispatched elsewhere too. In fact, after standing there for over 45 minutes, I heard a siren and got alarmed. A cop car pulled away with sirens blaring. As someone in the crowd standing next to me said, “They are probably going to take care of a real problem somewhere.” The problem wasn’t where we were standing.
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Rhys Pareja’s reputation is already shit. He is a crook in every sense of the word. He has a past of financial fraud and poor business practices.
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