Thread: Deportation Threat Has Contortionist in a Jam

"Thus, deportation proceedings against Ibashi-i were set in motion. Athanasiou predicts it will take one to two years before the case is resolved." We need more immigration court judges and personnel!

Deportation Threat Has Contortionist in a Jam
Updated: 1 hour 8 minutes ago
Karen Schwartz

AOL News

BOULDER, Colo. (May 30) -- Street performer Ibashi-i tries to take a philosophical approach to life. After all, he learned of his talent as a contortionist after getting stuck while digging a borehole toilet on his native island of St. Kitts.

Now, 40 years later, he finds himself stuck again. Despite the support of thousands of fans, he is facing possible deportation because of a misdemeanor marijuana conviction.


Karen Schwartz for AOL News
Street performer Ibashi-i, a contortionist from the island of St. Kitts, begins putting his body into a 20-inch Plexiglas cube during a performance in Boulder, Colo., on May 14.


For 20 years, several days a week, Ibashi-i has spread a blanket at the east end of the Pearl Street Mall and done what has given him local fame; he folds his 6-foot, 160-pound body into a 20-inch Plexiglas cube.

"Everybody knows him," says Joe Newsome, 26, a waiter at the Boulder Street Café. "They might not know his name or his history but they definitely know him."

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TWEEEET!

The shrill call of a schoolyard whistle pierces the quiet hum of midday activity.

"Everybody look at me. I'm over here. I'm about to start a show. I need a crowd." Ibashi-i yells. Wearing a yellow Bob Marley T-shirt over a green long-sleeve jersey, with baggy red shorts covering black tights, the tall, slender Rastafarian is hard to miss.

Some pause, then walk on. "It's OK. You don't have to be afraid. I'm a vegetarian," he calls after them.

Once a few people stop, others follow until a loose semicircle forms around the blanket. The show begins slowly. Ibashi-i stretches, cracks some jokes. He motions to the Plexiglas cube. "I do travel in the box," he says. "But only C.O.D."

Now that he has the crowds' attention, he begins to bend his body into more and more unnatural positions. The crowd claps quietly. A few snap photos. But they are all waiting for the box.

He bends his right leg behind his back until his foot is above his head. Sitting like that, he starts to juggle. The crowd is pleased. Then he leans his body to the side until he's lying on the ground with his foot still behind his head. Some in the crowd gasp. One man grabs his stomach as if queasy from the spectacle. No one leaves. They wait for the box.

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Ibashi-i (pronounced E-bash-E) came to the United States legally in 1984 to perform at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. He moved to Boulder a few years later and soon began busking on Pearl Street.

By 2006, he was included in the travel book "Colorado Curiosities," by Pam Grout. By 2009, he was named in the Boulder County People's Choice Awards.

That year, he came to the government's attention. Traveling back from the Caribbean, he was asked at U.S. customs if he'd ever been convicted of a crime. "He answered honestly," explains Ibashi-i's lawyer Joy Athanasiou.

In 2007, Ibashi-i, whose legal name is Mitford Theodore Brown, pleaded guilty in Denver to misdemeanor possession of marijuana under an ounce. He paid a $25 fine and spent a day in jail. Ironically, Denver had legalized possession of small amounts of marijuana, so Ibashi-i was charged under state statute.

Certain convictions -- including any related to a controlled substance -- make an immigrant deportable. Thus, deportation proceedings against Ibashi-i were set in motion. Athanasiou predicts it will take one to two years before the case is resolved.

Unlike criminal court, a deportation judge can look at any evidence of bad character and undesirably.

Working against Ibashi-i are his run-ins with the law. He has had six convictions, all for petty offenses: four were marijuana related, one for trespassing and one was a violation of court order stemming from an argument with a girlfriend over visitation of the children. No fine was more than $100.

Working in Ibashi-i's favor are his 26 years as a lawful permanent U.S. resident, the hardship to his four children ages 4 to 15 (all U.S. citizens) if they were separated from their father, and the value and service he provides to the community.

Athanasiou plans to argue that Ibashi-i has medical issues that are relieved through marijuana use. Ibashi-i says he now has a medical marijuana card for shoulder pain. As of now, Athanasiou doesn't plan to use an argument Ibashi-i has given to police, that smoking marijuana is part of his culture.

But perhaps the strongest argument for keeping Ibashi-in the United States is going to be his popularity as the man in the box. More than 5,100 people have joined the Facebook page "Keep Ibashi-i From Being Deported." An online petition has gathered 1,550 signatures.

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Ibashi-i says his stage name is Swahili for "original man of creation." He developed his moves as a young teen, watching wild monkeys and deer in St. Kitts. "I observed them and tried to incorporate it into my life," he says. "I call it Rasta yoga."

Ibashi-i doesn't know what he makes from performing, his only source of income, but says it wasn't enough to pay taxes. (Less than $9,350 in 2009). "I just do it because I like to do it," he says.

He lives in a rented condo, rides the bus, and says he contributes to child support. He has paid Athanasiou a $1,500 retainer, but isn't bitter. "Everything happens for a reason," he says.

If allowed to address the deportation judge, he will apologize for breaking the law. "If I had to do that part over again, I'd change that part," he says. "

Ibashi-i grins when told about the people supporting him: "Other performers come and go. I'm here year after year; summer, winter, sun, snow. I'm there for them. Now they are there for me."

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Ibashi-i stands on the cube, bending forward with straight knees until his elbows touch his toes.

He then moves to a 20-inch diameter metal tube, and works his folded body through it. It's an impressive feat, but garners only polite applause. The crowd is waiting for the box.

Finally, Ibashi-i stretches out in front of cube. People jostle for a better camera angle. He folds one leg in, and ducks his shoulders inside. Then he pauses, taking advantage of the crowds' full attention.

"By the way, I know you guys have seen lots of different shows. You have seen lots of jugglers; you have seen lots of magicians. But you haven't seen much of this one," he says.

"No," the crowd yells out.

"I wasn't kidding when I said this is what I do for a living," Ibashi-i continues. "Let's help keep live acts alive. How do you keep live acts alive? By giving; generously."

He quickly retreats into the cube his until all 6-feet of him is hunched inside, one leg below him, the other clutched in his arms. Whistles, applause and cheers ring out. A few children run up to the metal collection bucket and drop in dollar bills.

The show is over.

People wander off, Ibashi-i as well. He walks around, passing time until his next performance.

His blanket remains on the ground; the red, yellow and green tube in one corner, the clear Plexiglas box in the other. People pass without a second glance. Without Ibashi-i, it isn't the same.

http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/c ... t/19488628

sad yet also interesting ...

So this man's contribution to society is that he's bendable ... i think the whole show thing is really great ... but at the end of the day it comes down to this ...

how much support are his children getting from him ,and how much from the state ... he's got 4 kids , i want to know who's paying for them ...