Protest site dispute spurs talk of a move

 BY CYNTHIA CORZO, DANIEL CHANG, CHARLES RABIN AND MARTIN MERZER

 Notes of dissonance swept South Florida's musical and political communities Friday as disputes over Cuban exile protest sites during the Latin Grammy Awards
 motivated producers to consider moving the nationally televised show from downtown Miami to suburban Broward County.

 A day and night filled with meetings and conference calls between producers, members of the Host Committee, exile leaders and politicians ended inconclusively but with a distinct possibility:

 Miami could lose the second annual Latin Grammy Awards, scheduled for Sept. 11 at AmericanAirlines Arena. Instead, the show could go to the National Car Rental Center in Sunrise or to another region entirely.

 ``The possibility has arisen that the academy will pull the Grammys out of Miami due to the issue of where the protesters will be placed,'' said music producer Emilio
 Estefan Jr., who participated in some of the discussions.

 ``It's terrible. I think we're losing the Grammys.''

 A meeting Friday night between Cuban exile leaders, Miami Mayor Joe Carollo, high-ranking police officers, an arena representative and others ended with a proposal that still must be approved by all sides.

 The plan calls for a protest site just south of the Freedom Tower, which sits across Biscayne Boulevard from the arena, but some distance from the main entrance. It was not clear if that would satisfy either side.

 No decision from anyone involved in the dispute was expected until at least Sunday, leaving the show's fate up in the air.

 Nicki Grossman, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, said C. Michael Greene, president of the Latin Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, called her Friday afternoon to ask about the arena in Sunrise.

 ``They're looking at some alternatives and wanted [the National Car Rental Center] to consider being one of those alternatives,'' Grossman said. ``They're having some difficulties keeping their arrangements in Miami.

 ``He just asked us to take a look at the availability of the facility and security issues, and we agreed.''

 Representatives of the National Car Rental Center said no other event is scheduled there on Sept. 11.

 Contacted by The Herald, Greene declined to comment directly.

 ``There are too many people with a lot of goodwill working on this for me to get into the middle of it,'' Greene said. ``As soon as I'm ready to talk about it, we'll let you know.''

 PROTEST SITES

 The controversy revolves around sites for protests sponsored by a coalition of more than 60 Cuban exile groups opposed to the presence of Grammy nominees from Cuba.

 ``The issue that is driving the academy to rethink where the Latin Grammys will be held is the location of the First Amendment zone,'' said Patricia San Pedro, a member of the Latin Grammy Host Committee. ``That is at the root of the problem.''

 The exile groups want to be close to the arena and well within sight of spectators and news cameras. The American Civil Liberties Union and some local politicians,
 including Carollo, support them.

 ``This is America,'' Carollo said. ``Everyone has the same First Amendment rights.''

 Said Miami Commissioner Tomás Regalado:

 ``It's the right of the people to demonstrate. They should be afforded visibility. They should not be allowed on the arena property, but they should be allowed across the street at the Freedom Tower.''

 Representatives of the academy said they are concerned about security and unobstructed access to the arena. They want protesters kept at a farther distance.

 MEETINGS IN L.A.

 In Los Angeles, academy executives spent much of the day in closed-door meetings. Ron Roecker, a spokesman, said the group wanted to assure the ``safety of
 attendees and the integrity of doing a live international show.''

 ``We've been talking to city of Miami officials all day, about where the protesters are going to be . . .,'' he said. ``We've always known that there are going to be protesters, and we appreciate the heartfelt issues and support their rights.''

 Two Miami police officers familiar with the situation said an agreement had been reached weeks ago to limit protesters to a site at Biscayne Boulevard and Northeast Fifth Street, near Bayside Marketplace, several hundred yards south of the arena.

 Demonstrators might be able to see Grammy guests arrive and their protests might be heard, but it would be impossible to hit a guest with a thrown object, the officers said.

 ``The Grammy people were happy with Fifth Street,'' one police source said. ``As far as we were concerned, it was safer. The Grammy people didn't want all the hoopla and demonstrations so close to their guests. It was good publicity to keep them away from the cameras.''

 Police preferred the Bayside spot because if the situation threatened to spin out of control, officers could steer protesters east along Fifth Street toward the bridge to the Port of Miami-Dade.

 The situation changed earlier this week when some exile leaders realized how far they would be from the main entrance to the arena.

 Randall Marshall, the ACLU's legal director for Florida, used the terms ``corral'' and ``security zone'' in objecting to the city's plan.

 ``Miami is not a First-Amendment-free zone,'' Marshall said. ``It seems to me the city is trying to sanitize the protest by effectively distancing protesters from the arena to a point where they won't be able to effectively share their concerns with those attending the Grammys.''

 A police source said the groups took their complaints to Carollo, City Manager Carlos Gimenez and Police Chief Raul Martinez.

 ``They wanted to protest in front of the arena,'' the source said. ``We said this is totally unacceptable.

 ``You cannot have the protesters on the west side of Biscayne Boulevard as limousines dropped guests off across the road. They would be susceptible to frozen cans of Coke, batteries.''

 Carollo confirmed that he was petitioned by former Cuban political prisoners who complained that Bayside was too far away.

 ``So we set up a meeting with them, the police chief, the city manager and myself, and we went over other possibilities,'' Carollo said.

 ``I suggested Bicentennial [Park] and in front of the Freedom Tower, but Bicentennial would have interrupted the flow of traffic.''

 CANF REQUEST

 Joe Garcia, executive director of the Cuban American National Foundation, said his group would apply for a permit for a peaceful demonstration directly in front of the Freedom Tower, regardless of any compromise proposal.

 ``The Grammys should come,'' he said. ``People should be allowed to protest. But we're not going to protest -- we're going to speak. We're going to speak about the fact that people in Cuba aren't allowed to speak.''

 Those trying to mediate the dispute said they understood the motivations of both sides, but they do not want to lose the show.

 ``We, all generations of Cubans, are conscious of the pain our country has been through and that we have the right to protest,'' Estefan said. ``But we have to be informed before we decide to take action because from all the lists I have seen so far, no Cuban artist is scheduled to perform during the event.

 ``We need to learn how to pick our battles so we can deal a strong blow against Fidel Castro and his government. Having the Grammys in Miami is a huge victory.''

 Still, by the end of Friday night, confusion reigned on all fronts.

 In Los Angeles, Michael Roth, spokesman for the Staples Center in Los Angeles, the site of last year's program, said the place was booked on Sept. 11 for a concert by Madonna.

 But the Forum in Inglewood, near Los Angeles, is available that day. Has the academy asked the Forum to reserve Sept. 11, just in case?

 ``I don't know if there are any holds or not,'' said Roth, who also represents the Forum.

 Can the awards program be staged there in the remaining three weeks?

 ``A show like this typically needs seven or eight days to build a stage, have rehearsals, set the lights,'' he said.

 FUNDRAISING PROGRESS

 Lily Abello, executive director of the Host Committee, said the group was still making progress in its campaign to raise $1 million to offset the costs of producing the show in Miami.

 ``We are continuing to raise money as if the Grammys are still going to be here,'' she said. ``We haven't officially been told that it's not happening here. In fact, street
 banners are going up already.''

 Abello said the academy wants $500,000 in cash. The remainder can be in-kind donations of goods and services.

 The committee has been raising money for four months, and Abello said ``we're pretty close'' to reaching the $1 million goal, though she declined to share specifics.

 And so, near the end of a very hectic day, Estefan and others said they hoped that a settlement would be reached, somehow.

 ``For two years, I have worked very hard to bring the Latin Grammys to Miami because I want the world to see the city that gave birth to my music,'' Estefan said. ``It would be a shame if this effort does not come to fruition.''

 Herald staff writers Manny Garcia, Jordan Levin and Jay Weaver contributed to this report.

                                    © 2001 The Miami Herald