Today on my way home I travelled on a MUNI train. At one of the stops along the way five SFPD officers boarded the train checking passengers proof of payment. One of the officers noticed that I had a camera and came up to me and told me that I was not allowed to take photos on MUNI. I immediately challenged him and said that I can take photos on MUNI. I did not raise my voice and remained calm but the officer opposing my rights to photograph raised his and within seconds I had an officer on either side of me. The first officer to approach me said that this is MUNI and that I am not allowed to photograph without written permission. I told him that I am familiar with my rights and expect him to be too and that I indeed do have the right to photograph on MUNI and any other public space. He then stated that MUNI is not public. I had to laugh, but refrained from challenging him on MUNI being public or not. I asked where is the information that states that one can not photograph on MUNI and he stated he did not have to show documentation and that his verbal instructions where enough. The officer standing on the otherside of me then told me that I could call 311 to get the information. I immediately pulled out my cell phone and called 311 and asked the question. The person on the other end of the phone said I can photograph on MUNI. The officer was very upset at this point and probably embarrassed since a few people on the train were paying attention to the conversation. The officers got off at the next stop.

More and more often I am having my first ammedment rights challenged when taking photographs in public spaces. It seriously alarms me and we all need to do a better job of standing up for our rights. We all need to be better informed of our rights too. This is the United States of America and I encourage anyone and everyone within its borders to celebrate the freedom to photograph.

Take photos on MUNI and while you are at it, take photos of the SFPD if you want. It’s perfectly within your rights to do so. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.