Cops and culture.
That's what will be greeting crowds descending on downtown Cincinnati this weekend to take part in Ujima Cinci-bration, an African street festival in the business district, or the Coors Light Festival at Cinergy Field.
About 150 officers will be working at one time in the downtown area, and at least 100 more are on deck should problems arise, said District 1 Capt. Vincent Demasi. It is the largest special events security detail, exceeding Riverfest, Jammin' on Main and Oktoberfest, he said.
"It's a mini-police district we've created for the events," he said, noting that officers will be on foot, in cruisers and on horses patroling the area. The idea is to control traffic and crowds at the two weekend events, which are expected to draw a total of 100,000 visitors Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Last year, an outbreak of violence -- including the shooting death of one man, and 97 arrests made on a variety of charges -- marred the weekend.
Capt. Demasi said the idea is to prevent problems, rather than have to intervene later on: "We're not going to let a situation deteriorate to where it becomes unmanageable."
With an eye toward keeping the peace, officers will be working early to:
Keep traffic moving. Last year, the streets were clogged with foot and vehicular traffic. At the first sign of gridlock, the affected streets will be closed off within the boundary of the Ohio River, Central Parkway, Central Avenue and Broadway.
Enforce the curfew. Officers have already stepped up enforcement of the city law with more than 100 youths were found in violation of the curfew ordinance during the last two weekends. The curfew calls for 16- and 17-year-olds to be off the streets or accompanied by a parent or adult in public after midnight. Anyone 15 or younger should be in by 10 p.m.
The police division said that most of the troublemakers last year were 18 or older, but there is still a need to watch out for the young ones.
"Part of the problem, too, is that there were an inordinately large number of young people around the square very late at night and very early in the morning, and there was a risk and a concern for the children. I wouldn't suggest they were down there committing crime -- but there was a risk, a hazard created by their presence," said Deputy Safety Director Rodney Prince.
Last year, a 14-year-old boy was raped in the downtown area. Rank-and-file police officers are optimistic there won't be a repeat of last year's violence, local Fraternal Order of Police President Keith Fangman said.
But he said it's up to young people to keep things calm.
"It's not the police who were committing the murder and shootings that occurred last year," he said. "It's not the police who were the ones shooting guns off at Fountain Square last year. It's not the police who were committing the rapes and armed robberies that occurred last year. It's time for a reality check."
Officers fear they won't be supported if the crowd turns on them, he said.
"If, God forbid, violence does break out again, and the officers do take necessary enforcement action," he said, "then we are hopeful that the politicians and members of the community will continue to support those police officers after the fact."
Some who have attended past music festivals understand why police are on alert.
"We brought that on ourselves with the murders and that," said Rob Minor, 18, of the West End. "People just don't know how to act."
J.R. Edwards, 46, said he hopes the actions of a few people don't ruin the festivities for everyone.
"Everybody's not down there to be rowdy," the West End man said. "You've got a lot of people who just want to have a good time." More blocked-off streets and a ban on cruising will change the atmosphere of the festival, said Kevin Stallwarth, 23, of the West End.
"Really, they're cutting out the fun," he said. "You know how people used to go down and chill? It won't be like that this year. If I go down there, I'm going to go and see the show and go home."
Organizers and authorities say the event takes the focus away from the "scene" and being seen downtown that for years has been associated with the weekend of concerts at the stadium. The event is named after one of the principles of Kwanzaa: Ujima, which stresses collective work and responsibility.
With an organized event in the downtown, more than 100 police officers and 800 adults volunteering to help with the event, authorities think they have a better chance of maintaining the peace.
"It is certainly organized in that (what) we have now is an actual group that has accepted the responsibility of controlling this event and have turned it into a family-oriented, positive event," Mr. Prince said.
