March 8, 2012 by WCMC
Today, the Solidarity Sing Along was inside. Also inside was a group of high school students on the first floor with exhibits. I’ll preface this story with a few facts:
- While generally told in advance of other events that would clash with the noontime singalong, when we come to the rotunda and find ourselves faced with another group who asks us to move, we move
- Tubbs was walking around the circle on the ground floor near the beginning. He spoke to no one and disappeared, reappearing on the second floor for a short period of time. He said nothing about the group
- A friend told me that they were informed of our singalong, therefore knowing that we would be there. Some were reportedly looking forward to it
- Paul Farrow has a shaky relationship with facts
With all that laid out, when I saw Paul Farrow stalking around the outer circle on the first floor, I ran to talk to him. He was mad. I asked him if he was going to write another letter to Mike Huebsch, Secretary of the Department of Administration. He asked if we had a permit. I said it was the noon hour. He called us “pathetic” and stormed away, wrenching open the door that leads to the long hall of offices. I grabbed it and asked him if he was going to lie about this, my camera in hand. As I let it shut and walked away, he charged out and said that we would talk. I could film it, but he would, too. The ensuing conversation:
Saying this was “bullshit” and calling us “pathetic.”
After reflecting on this incident, I’m left wondering: will the Capitol Police use their inaction of not telling us to move when another group had a permit (though I heard no one complaining) and Paul Farrow’s forthcoming letter as another excuse to ‘crack down’?
Also, as I was packing up to go, a man in a suit walked up to me. He said quietly, “Keep up the good work.” Bewildered, I replied, “Thank you,” and he walked away, briefly speaking to others in the group as well.
Wisconsin Citizens Media Cooperative 
It seemed like a normal protest sing along to me, though I got there a few minutes late. I sang from the first floor and saw not one student exhibitor or teacher complaining or looking upset. I think they probably looked on it as an occasion.
Mr. Farrow should get over himself and stop trying to make himself look like a victim. Remember, sir, we pay your salary and benefits and you serve at our pleasure.
I was singing with a couple of the kids, I also talked to a few of them about their exhibits. No one, and I mean no one except Paul Farrow was upset.
I asked a few folks near the tables if they would like a song book, and they didn’t really turn it down, but didn’t take a book either. I agree that the tabling folks somewhat took the Singalong as a regular event, a daily occurence that takes place in their State Capitol, in the rotunda, for democracy. When I asked one person about the timeline of the tables, his reply was that they were leaving at 1 PM to return to their respective schools.
It is not that we are _supposed to_ sing outside when someone has a permit, as Mr. Farrow asserts. We simply choose to do so to avoid confrontation and to be fair. As far as _supposed tos_ are concerned, we’re not supposed to sing inside unless we have a permit. But those supposed tos infringe on our rights, so we ignore them.
Truth in Labeling: UnRepresentative Paul UnFarrow.