Blast gigs under threat

The move has been triggered by complaints from Temple Bar Properties and visits by the gardai to the Temple Bar Music Centre, where Stephenson regularly runs Blast gigs – all ages no-alcohol-permitted rock gigs.

The venue recently received a visit from Inspector Leahy from Pearse St. garda station, following a complaint from Tammy Dillon, director of Temple Bar Properties, who maintained that the gig was badly managed. She objected to large numbers of young people congregating in the area around the Temple Bar Music Centre, before and after Blast gigs, suggesting that this could cause problems with anti-social behaviour and littering.

Robert Stephenson feels that the teenagers attending the gigs are being unfairly targeted because of their age, appearance and musical tastes. “My main concern is that the rights of our teenagers are respected. They have the right to assembly, the right to socialise and enjoy music. Their rights as young Irish citizens should not be impaired just because they wear black t-shirts or have long hair.” Stephenson adds, “There have been 6,000 kids attending Blast gigs since January, without any trouble, and no other complaints. I suppose in any large group of people, be it a few hundred GAA fans, there might be a handful of bad apples, but I don’t see why people should complain about young people attending these gigs, when there is clearly far more anti-social behaviour committed by adults in the area after the pubs close at night.

What it comes down to is that teenagers are being discriminated against simply because people don’t like the look of them. It’s a form of cultural fascism, and is completely disgraceful.” At the time of writing, both the Garda officials involved and the director of Temple Bar Properties were unavailable for comment.