Though predominately an African American crowd, there were people of all races enjoying the scene. With age ranges of attendees between early 30's through mid 60's - the crowd was very mature and single focused - out to enjoy a pleasant day of contemporary jazz music.
One of the best aspects of the day was being around so many music lovers. I recognized that despite the diversity among those in attendance - race, income, age etc.. there was also a common buzz which permeated the air, that of a mature group of people who had a taste for jazz and culture and it was powerful.
Two days later the citizens of Annapolis began an all out revolt against the Jazz fest. As residents from the surrounding neighborhoods complained about cars parked bumper to bumper on residential streets, loud music "amplified towards their homes" and trash left on the grounds that blew into their yards - the president of the Naval Academy Athletic Association vowed "There won't be anymore Jazz Fest there," at the Naval Academy stadium.
The Mayor of Annapolis declared that the festival had been a test case to see if the stadium could hold an event of that magnitude and had failed. The NAACP immediately got involved saying the decision to unceremoniously target the jazz fest was akin to targeting the black community. Naturally, immediately everyone popped their eyes in disbelief, how on earth could this be declared racism?
You want to know how? Because the Naval Academy stadium is home to many events - Navy home games, Navy graduation, the local Rotary club's Crab Fest, the local Wine Festival and much more. Because Annapolis is home to two boat shows each year and is located just off of Route 50, the main artery to Ocean City, Maryland, one of the region's most popular beach resorts. In other words, this small town has seen its fair share of large crowds, loud noises and traffic jams!!!!!
