The Bitter Fruit of Local Tyranny

[XLFD]

The proliferation of young entrepreneurs interested in quenching summer thirsts the same way their parents and grandparents did by opening a lemonade stand, has come under attack.

 

 

On August 11 in Nevada, Emma Farrell, 12, and Alex Farrell, 14, were cited and shut down Aug. 3 for selling lemonade without a permit at a golf tournament.  This is just the latest in the recent trend of local government agencies draining the lifeblood of our future capitalists: our kids.  In what was once an epitome of Americana, lemonade stands and other related kiddie businesses have come under assault by government representatives who see these innocent entrepreneurs as threats to their very existence. 

 

On August 2, in Iowa, police in Coralville shut down at least three lemonade stands run by children over RAGBRAI (a famous bicycle race) weekend.   According to the city of Coralville, 4-year-old Abigail Krutsinger was in violation of a two day ordinance, which required all vendors to have permits when RAGBRAI rolled into town; she had made less than $5 selling lemonade at $.25 a glass eight blocks away from the route when she was visited by the local police and ordered to cease operations.

Bobbie Nelson's sons, ages 4 and 6, were told by the Coralville cops that a permit to sell their lemonade would cost $400.   "The kids were devastated," Nelson said.  "They just cried and didn't understand why.  They didn't know what was going on, they just thought their signs weren't good enough". 

On July 15 in Georgia, three young girls trying to get enough money to go to a water park had their lemonade stand shut down by Midway Police.  The girls were told they needed a business license, peddler's permit and food permit to operate, even on residential property. The permits cost $50 a day or $180 per year.  They decided to do chores and yard work to earn the money.

 

This is just a snapshot of the complete problem, which has been getting worse over the years, as local government entities look for their piece of the action from these youthful venture capitalists.  Here is an interactive Map of local government actions on lemonade stands in the USA

 

As noted green dots, are areas where common sense has prevailed an kids have been granted the explicit right to sell this summertime acidic classic or other similar effects by the sane local governments, the red are areas where the madness has kicked in.  It has gotten so bad, that some are fighting back to try and encourage, rather than discourage capitalism in our youth.

 

In Philadelphia, Chris Cantwell, a comedian, activist, and public speaker originally from New York helped organize a civil disobedience event in protest of government agents threatening children for running lemonade stands. This year, he and other activists set up a lemonade stand in Philadelphia, PA. They applied for no permits, they paid no taxes, they just set up a lemonade stand and conducted voluntary trade with passers by, just as many of them did as kids.  But they were there to prove a point and they openly acknowledged they were doing it illegally.  And guess what:  this day they won. 

 

Lemonade Freedom Day is August 20.  If your local municipality or township has come out against such expressions of free enterprise, you have a civic duty to support the inalienable right for kids to open lemonade stands.

 

 

[Willy]

I'm wondering why we see no protests like this regarding Obama care, the NSA, Common Core, IRS harassment, spying on Americans, ect. I understand where these people are coming from and I also feel sorry for that police officer in the video  however, this issue is not about kids, it's about protecting local businesses from "unfair" competition. Local businesses must pay insurance, utilities, rent, taxes, permits, fees and other assorted expenses to stay in business. By allowing street vendors to operate free of those  expenses creates an unfair playing field for the established businesses and takes away customers that would otherwise spend their money in the local established businesses.  If there were to many street vendors the established business would not be able to survive so the local authorities require the vendors to pay  fees to operate  and compete with those established businesses or don't allow the vendors to operate at all near those businesses. The problem is that local Government agencies have gone overboard when they included "kids" selling lemonade and they should exempt them from having to operate as adults.  The laws are to rigid and should be more flexible but that's up to the people's representatives in local Government.

[XLFD]

Quite right, Willy, the laws made by these agencies are often made with no distinction between the franchised vendor hawking his wares at the park and the young kid trying to get some bucks in their front yards on hot days. 

Even though Ludington currently allows kid's lemonade stands (see below), a strict reading of their laws concerning "transient merchants" could one day have it interpreted that they would need to be registered with the City Clerk at the least. 

[Wally Melendez]

This is not all over here there are many children selling lemonade and no problem the PD even stops and get a cup and give a dollar for a listed.25 cup.

[XLFD]

This definitely is not a universal problem, but it has been growing in scope.  But even Ludington's government has been good in this regard.  Spearheaded by the efforts of Tom and Patricia Ezdebski and the Ludington Optimist Club, the last seven years there has been actual sponsorship of lemonade stands.  From a Facebook post this June on the LOC website: 

"The 7th annual Childhood Cancer Campaign Lemonade Stand Day will take place on Saturday, June 1. All proceeds will go to families in Mason County that have a child with cancer.

A program of the Optimist Club of Ludington, this fundraiser is designed as a kids helping kids event. Participants may operate their stand for any length of time that works for them that day at the location of their choosing. Lemonade mix and cups are provided."