Sideshow (automobile exhibition)

A sideshow (so-called in the San Francisco Bay Area, and a street takeover in the Los Angeles area) is an informal and often illegal demonstration of automotive stunts now often held in vacant lots, and public intersections, originally seen in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, United States. Sideshows first appeared in Oakland, California in the 1980s as informal social gatherings of Bay Area youth.

In the present day, sideshows, in addition to being inherently illegal, often involve crime and or shootings.

History

Sideshows first emerged on the streets of Oakland, California during the mid 1980s. The first sideshows were originally ad hoc carshows where people would congregate in the Eastmont Mall or Foothill Square parking lot. The original intent of the sideshows at this time was for people to show off their cars, typically 1960s- and 1970s-made muscle cars. Sideshows became the alternative hot spot for those too young to gain entrance into 21-and-over nightclubs, and had outgrown the parking lots of Eastmont Mall and Foothill Square. They were made even more popular throughout the 1990s with such songs as Bay Area rapper Richie Rich's "Sideshow" anthem: "Down Bancroft / To the light / Let me warm it up, I hit a donut tight / Chevy on my side / Windows straight tinted / He got hype when he saw me spinnin’ / I’m up outta there, sideways to the next light"

In the 21st century, sideshows have become increasingly popular in other cities, such as Los Angeles, Kansas City, Detroit and in multiple cities in Texas, despite the danger that they pose to the public.

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Notable incidents

Early Sunday, June 23rd 2024, at 1:56 AM, the eastbound lanes of the Bay Bridge was blocked up with at least 6 vehicles and hundreds of spectators until 2:22 AM with the cars doing doughnuts and fireworks going off.

On July 6th, 2024, at approximately 4:30 AM, dozens of people broke into and ransacked a 76 gas station in Oakland, after having attended a nearby sideshow. Oakland police responded nine hours later, only after being shown video of the aftermath.

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