Police to cite Erykah Badu for taking off her clothes in public

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they play it safe. are quick to assassinate what they don’t understand. they move in packs, ingesting more and more fear with every act of hate on one another. they feel most comfortable in groups. less guilt to swallow. they are us. this is what we have become. afraid to respect the individual. a single person within her circumstance can move one to change, to love herself, to evolve.

They may play it safe, Erykah Badu -- but they also can write you a ticket if you bare your butt in public and someone files a complaint. Like, after you and fans talk about your ‘performance art’ endlessly for days and days as you use it to promote your new album.

Oh, didn’t we mention before that singer Badu has a new album out?

A tweet from the singer on Thursday, referencing her naked stroll through Dallas, said, ‘No one has pressd charges . All propaganda . Dont believe everything u hear . Fall back soldiers . EveryTING fine .’

On Friday the scene changed a bit: A woman who on March 13 ‘observed Ms. Badu remove her clothing on the public street’ and ‘had two small children with her and was offended’ has filed a complaint with authorities, the Dallas Morning News reports, and the Dallas police expect to issue the singer a citation next week for disorderly conduct.

\The Class C misdemeanor would be punishable by a fine. For her ‘Window Seat’ video released Saturday, Badu walked through Dealey Plaza to the spot where President Kennedy was assassinated, taking off her clothes along the way and then falling down naked on the ground to the sound of a gunshot, followed by a shout of ‘groupthink.’ The shout is followed by a recitation of the quote up top, which we rendered entirely in lowercase letters because, well, that’s what we think Erykah intended.

Badu has said that her ‘performance art’ has been grossly misinterpreted and wasn’t intended to be disrespectful to JFK’s memory. And in case you haven’t been following events, you need to know that -- as best as we can tell -- the independent thinkers among us have determined anyone who doesn’t ‘get it’ pretty much isn’t evolved, can’t think on his or her own and is a victim of groupthink.

So, how many members of the group think that any fine Badu might have to pay will pale in comparison to the additional money made on an album that, in the absence of widely publicized Badu booty, lots of people wouldn’t have known they could buy right now in stores?

Just groupthinking out loud.

-- Christie D’Zurilla

Photos: Neosoul singer Erykah Badu performs on July 4, 2008, top. At right, Sgt. Warren C. Mitchell of the Dallas Police Department speaks during a news conference April 2, 2010, announcing that Badu will be charged with disorderly conduct for her nude video shoot on a downtown Dallas street. Credits: Fabrice Coffrini / AFP / Getty Images, top; LM Otero / Associated Press, right.

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