Why I Break the Law Every Day

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Mr. Beat tells the story of how "jaywalking" not only became a thing, but became an illegal thing to do.

Uh ok, so this is, like, the description of the video so keep reading. Produced by Matt Beat. Filmed by Shannon Beat and Matt Beat. Additional images used under fair use guidelines or found in the public domain. Music by Dyalla, Electric Needle Room (Mr. Beat's band), Jake County, and TrackTribe. Creative commons credit: Suesen.

@zanytime referenced videos:

Here's an annotated script with footnotes:

Sources/further reading:
Street Rivals: Jaywalking and the Invention of the Motor Age Street by Peter Norton (2007)

#jaywalking #jaywalker #history

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[iammrbeat]

I'm an illegal. You probably are, too.

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[bknpnck]

Why would you do this, Mr. Beat? You were my role model

[infernoshrimp]

My name is Jay so technically I’m ALWAYS JayWalking

[Amy_Reviews]

Mr. Beat, when you were a teacher, you mentioned numerous times your dislike for the No Child Left Behind Act made by George W. Bush and said no teacher you knew was a fan of it. I think the No Child Left Behind Act and your views on it deserves its own video as I would love to hear your thoughts about it in detail.

[vulpzin]

I'm quite shocked but yet unimpressed that jaywalking fearmongering was basically corporate propaganda from the car industry, oh wow... Wow

[giosetaro]

Mr Beat I am in contact with the police as we speak

[ananas_anna]

In an unjust society, breaking laws can often be moral. Sometimes more moral than following them.

[CynicalHistorian]

Arrest this man! He can't keep getting away with this!

[lucinae]

In the UK jaywalking is so common, that most of us don't even use the term and have only heard of it in American media.

[G-Forces]

Wow the car industry really ruined this country...

[neor]

I was stopped, put in the back of a police car and frisked for crossing a one-way in Los Angeles in 2018.

Meanwhile in New Orleans, you can walk across a green light in the mid city.

[evanmcgurrin]

I like your comedic style. It's hard to beat a guy in the street talking about automotive industry propaganda campaigns

[thatdudewithdonuts]

we need more lanes and less sidewalk and also more suvs, i think that’d solve our problem of pedestrian friendly cities 100%

[ReSunDestin]

I'm french and the first time I heard of jaywalking and people getting fined for it I was absolutely shocked, here it's pretty much the "norm", we don't even have a word for it

[jezzarisky]

IIRC the term 'car accident' was also one of these terms pushed by the auto industry. If it's one person's mistake, why would we need systemic fixes (like that traffic regulation in Cincinnati govern car speeds)? Everyone makes mistakes while driving, whereas installing safety measures reduces where a person can make a mistake that leads to injury or death.

[timgora]

1:08 technically what that black suv is doing is considered illegal… before proceeding, you’re supposed to yield until the *entire* crosswalk is clear, regardless if your lane is clear or not. It’s an infraction in many states but is still broken thousands of times a day.

[faithgrins]

I don't have a problem with jaywalking. A lot of neighborhoods in my city are just kind of built to strand pedestrians in little concrete islands. Folks gotta get places. Find your spot and go for it. Most people get it.

What I'll never understand is people who will step into the middle of a busy road without looking and just assume oncoming traffic will slam on their brakes to avoid turning them into a pancake, or people who will walk down the middle of a not-completely-empty road when there's a perfectly good sidewalk on either side of the street. Like, I'll drive around you, but I just do not understand why people take their lives into their own hands like that.

[darkmatterhafnium]

i am devastated. Why, just why, Mr Beat?

[Shawwblagoo]

LegalEagle is going to love that title.

[eltamarindo]

This used to be a favorite way for the LAPD to raise funds with a minimum of effort. They went out each day at lunchtime and grabbed all the office people who were cutting corners going to their lunch spots. -- thousands in fines everyday just blocks from headquarters.