In New York, the city is proposing new rules to require many photographers and camera operators to obtain permits before taking photos or shooting video in the city. Under the proposal, any group of two or more people using a handheld camera in one location for more than 30 minutes would be required to have a permit and $1 million in insurance. In addition, small groups using a single tripod for more than 10 minutes would be forced to obtain a permit and insurance. On Friday, over 400 people rallied in Union Square to protest the proposed rules.

Civil rights attorney Norman Siegel: “We are a city and a country that values free expression, and to say to people who have cameras that they have to get permits if they are there for a certain period of time or if they have a tripod seems to me to be trampling on people’s First Amendment rights, and we in New York need to speak up and speak up now. Otherwise, we will wake up and our rights will have eroded.”

Over 6,000 people, including Michael Stipe and Patti Smith, have signed a petition in recent days opposing the city’s proposal.