Citizensforbatman.org
The site
Upon Batman's emergence as a beacon of hope for Gotham citizens, Gotham authorities are equally adamant about his arrest due to his unlawful vigilante activities. Citizens for Batman is a group of people who regularly get together in support of Batman.
DON'T LET CITY HALL ARREST BATMAN!
It’s like a bad dream. Gotham citizens are under attack. We’ve been attacked, robbed, knifed, assaulted, even murdered. THEN BATMAN APPEARS For the first time, we have hope. Batman proves we can fight back against the sociopaths, thugs, and scum that have ruled Gotham for too long. And now, City Hall wants to arrest Batman! FIGHT BACK, FIGHT FOR BATMAN Batman has given us hope back. He’s given us back a sense of power over our own lives. He’s saved lives. Now, Batman needs our help! Don’t let Batman be arrested. Don’t let the politicians and the corrupt cops win. Don’t give in to crime and corruption. |
Meeting times
Thursdays, 8pm
Gotham City Community Center #5 1310 Adams Street, Downtown (moved from Rossi’s Deli) Sundays, 1PM |
Contact
Email: join@citizensforbatman.org
Sending a message to the email address results in an autoreply response:
Dear Gotham Citizen,
Thanks for expressing your interest in joining Citizens for Batman. The easiest way you can join is by attending a meeting. Check the web site for meeting times. If you can't attend, you can always lobby City Hall to support Batman and stop any talk of his being arrested. Looking forward to seeing you, Founder and President, Citizens for Batman |
April 1, 2008
A new update is added to the News section:
BATMAN does it again! He saves another innocent Gothamite from the clutches of evil! Citizens for Batman has invited his latest rescue, Ulyana Kasparkova, to the next meeting to share with us her incredible story! Don’t miss it!
Here’s what we know – Ulyana was walking down Fleeting Avenue last Thursday. Suddently, ski-masked thugs came out of nowhere and pulled out a pistol! Then, Batman swooped in, with a classic lasso and hoist (a move he has employed at the docks, and using trees, at Harlow Park) . Batman roped the gunman and left him dangling from a light pole for police to pick up later! Kasparkova has accepted our invite and will tell all! She also works as a dental technician and is expected to offer Citizens for Batman discounts on teeth cleaning! Way to go, Ulyana!!!!! |
April 9, 2008
Four new updates are added to the News section:
King James Bible (Psalms 8:2), "Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger." Whether young or old, black or white, rich or poor, the citizens of Gotham have placed our trust in Batman! |
BATMAN BRINGS HOPE TO SKID ROW Life is tough for the vagrants in the rat-infested streets of Q5; violence, drugs and ok. The area is one of the worst in the city, but that didn't scare Batman! "He swooped down from that buildin' ova' there!" said one guy that CFB talked to. "One minute, I'm getting' pushed around by a couple a' punk kids, and the next minute he's savin' my hide. What a guy!" Batman saves the day! |
ALL ABOARD! Spread the word: the Gotham Monorail is open for business. The city's daily commuters took to the underground subway system with a renewed sense of confidence last Wednesday. And Citizens For Batman know why – cuz of Batman! "I used to be scared to take public transportation," admitted Maxine Fleiner-Baer, a member of CFB since the beginning. "But, who needs to worry with a strapping hero like [Batman] watching over us?" Who needs to worry? I'll tell you who: anyone who crosses the strong arm of the law. And, no, I'm not talking about the crooked cops of this festering berg; I'm talking about Batman. Beware, evildoers, because the subway belongs to the citizens once again! |
THE NEXT GENERATION OF BAT-FANS 11-year-old Francisco Gracia-Godinez won the citywide essay contest with his report entitled, "We Owe Our Life to Batman." The 500-word effort details how Frank and his family barely avoided a gruesome death at the hands of the Gambol crime syndicate recently. "He's the bravest man I've ever seen," little Franky said. "Even braver than my dad, the president and the whole army, too." |
June 9, 2008
An update is added to their introduction:
LEAVE OUR HERO ALONE!
There’s only one man who has devoted his life, his soul and even his identity to fighting Gotham’s criminals wherever they may lurk. He is the one we call “Batman” and he’s under fire from the media and the establishment. They’ve never understood his quiet brand of justice, but the latest development is that we, the members of CFB, are also starting to take the heat. WE'RE NOT THE PROBLEM The public has the wrong opinion about Citizens for Batman. Well, who could blame them? According to the liberal press, we’re a bunch of violent hooligans who roam the streets looking for trouble. They only got one thing wrong: those are the people we’re working against. FIGHT THE REAL ENEMY CFB was founded as a network of concerned Gothamites who keep a watchful eye out for thugs, robbers and worse. These should be the targets of public scorn, not us. We are a peaceful organization that operates within the confines of the law and we always have. Don’t believe the hype; CFB is here to help Batman without hurting anyone, we’re here to clean up this town and we’re here to stay! |
New updates to the News section:
VOTE "YES" ON PROP D Batman has been called many things - a menace, a legend, an enigma - but, the one title that seems to follow him wherever he goes is "vigilante." Because of this label, Batman has been unfairly dogged by the Gotham authorities for far too long. But now, voters have the chance to help him do his job. Proposition D will require the Gotham Police to turn their priorities from so-called "vigilantes" and make them focus their efforts on the real criminals. So, when you go to the polls, say "yes" to a safer city, say "yes" to supporting a true hero and say "yes" to Prop D. |
BATMAN CHIC
When Marc Uttansky's wife dragged him to a costume party last weekend, he was dreading it. But, then he had an epiphany: he decided to dress as the Batman. "It was easy, really," explained Uttansky. "I just made the head out of an old kickball, painted it black, applied some electrical tape that looked like ears and voila!" When partygoers voted on their favorite outfit, Uttansky took second place and he was happy to share the credit. "Thanks, Batman. We're lookin' good!" |
PUT UP YOUR DUKES The Citizens for Batman will be conducting self-defense classes after their weekly meetings every Thursday, 8pm, at GCCC. These classes are open to the public, but CFB reminds all participants that these are non-violent workshops meant to increase your awareness, dexterity and sense of preservation in the face of an attack. We are not to use these techniques as an offense. That being said, Pedro Malangue is making real strides in his patented "roundhouse scissor punch" technique. See you on Thursday! |
CFB event
June 30, 2008
Promotional materials
Participants who submitted to Batman Sightings on Gothamcablenews.com begin to receive a package from Citizensforbatman.org starting June 30th. The packages contain stickers, pins, metal keychains, and a note:
Citizens for Batman!
It's time to go public. To really defend Batman, we have to show the world how big our movement is. So check out the goodies inside and show your pride in CFB! And get ready for a MAJOR show of force July 8th. (check out citizensforbatman.org for the latest) Defend Gotham. Defend Batman! Brian Douglass |
CFB video submissions
Participants who submitted videos promoting Citizens for Batman also receive an additional promotional package, which includes a CFB shirt featuring the logo.
Countdown
The Citizensforbatman.org webpage was updated with a countdown to 10:00 PM EDT on July 8, 2008. Clicking on the CFB pin links back to the normal home page.
July 3, 2008
The site updates with a submission field. In the CFB forums, BriDog72 informs the board that the key to activate it is "on invoice 38272899," but that he could get no other information since the informant (Batfan73) was arrested for trespassing. An update on Gothamcityrail.com reveals Batfan73 is GCR engineer Chuck Craston. Using this last name and the invoice number from CFB in Maroniimports.com brings up an invoice for one amplifier, which contains a software key.
Once the key was found and activated, the locations for the July 8th event are revealed: New York City and Chicago.
Sometimes, you have to take a stand. You have to fight for respect. You have to let the entire world know you're here. On July 8th, nobody will be able to ignore us. Gather at the above coordinates at the appointed time, and help us take a stand in support of Batman! If you can't join us on the ground, we'll be providing a way for you to watch what goes down, live on this website. Defend Gotham! Defend Batman!
Signal Booster status: ON |
July 8, 2008
At 3pm EDT a chat site and a live feed are made available for each location by clicking on each building.
Chat
10 PM EDT
Participants who gathered in each location received CFB swag (including shirts) and Gotham Times newspapers. They were given notes stapled to Domino's pizza boxes with a code word and directions to find a lockbox at another location. The lockbox contained other instructions to find a 2-way radio at yet another location, and once the radio found and the code word given, they were directed to another spot overlooking a building. Now hahaha can be seen in replace of the batsignal.
A Batsignal was then shown on the Woolworth Building (NYC) and Sears Tower (Chicago)
Chicago |
New York City |
The Batsignal in Chicago was turned off shortly afterward, presumably for maintenance purposes (the signal was very dim and hard to see), although it might also be due to the Chicago Police Department's unawareness of the event.
This is a quick run through of the points that were interesting at the NYC gathering
Batsignal On New York Building
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July 10, 2008
At 10 PM EDT, the countdown on Whysoserious.com/Overture ended with a link to Citizensforbatman.org. Visiting the site reveals the Joker has vandalized it in the style of Thehahahatimes.com.
Clicking on the live feed icons shows that the Batsignal is being projected on the Woolworth Building and Sears Tower. However, a short time later, the Batsignals are ripped apart like in the teaser trailer and replaced with a "Joker signal" like the one on Whysoserious.com/Stupidbats.
New York City |
Chicago |
Forums
On April 9, 2008, the Citizens for Batman message board went online. Players cannot join the forums, but can read the threads. The forums spoof the Superhero Hype! message boards, a popular discussion place for the Dark Knight ARG. Many SHH members have found their usernames spoofed in these forums.
Film connections
Minor spoilers:
The film includes a scene with Gotham citizens dressed as Batman acting as vigilantes, and the secret forum (see the below section) indicates that Citizens for Batman's members will become these fake Batmen. The casting sides include two related scenes; one where Batman confronts one of the vigilantes and another where Brian Douglass, the group's leader, is being interrogated by an unknown individual about why he wants to be like Batman.
Hidden links
A secret second forum known as CFB Underground was found through the Gotham City Pizzeria's free pizza promotion. This second forum is where members discuss their plans to enforce Gotham's laws with vigilante justice.