Juggalos Worried About Police Presence at Music Festival

The 2014 Gathering of the Juggalos comes to a close this Sunday in Thornville, OH, and according to the Village Voice, Juggalos, the fans of Detroit horrorcore rap group Insane Clown Posse, are enjoying an increased police presence different from years before:

Yet, this year's security force is a departure from the past in that it includes a small armada of uniformed police officers on golf carts loudly labeled "SHERIFF." Understandably, the presence of police this year has created apprehension within the juggalo community.

While the Gathering of the Juggalos has included drug use and dust ups like the pelting of singer entertainer Tila Tequilla with bottles in the past, Juggalos may be concerned for a much bigger reason: In 2011 the FBI classified Juggalos as a gang that could be prone to violence and local police departments across the country have used the classification to profile, detain, and interrogate Juggalos who wear the Juggalo hatchet man symbol on their clothing or proclaim themselves to be Juggalos.

Juggalos at the 2013 Gathering of the Juggalos voiced their concerns over the classification to Reason TV in Juggalos vs. the FBI: Why Insane Clown Posse Fans are Not a Gang: