New York Behind Iowa - Again! Help Lift the MMA Ban

New York City, the metaphorical bridge between progressive Europe and puritanical America, is once again trailing behind states like Iowa and Connecticut - first on the issue of gay marriage, and now on the issue of mixed martial arts. MMA is now legal in just about every state in the country, with the glowing exception of the Empire State.  Who wants to see GSP fighting at MSG? Let’s get it on!

Bloody Elbow posted some updated links on where we can learn how to unite as a community, in an effort to see our sport legalized in the perennial capital of the world.  We compiled some additional links that are useful:

Sign the Petition to Lift The Ban: The folks at CagePotato.com announced this petition back in January and have been compiling signatures… they’ve got 3,000+ so lets keep up the momentum.

Check out MMAFacts.com: The site seems to be a semi-official resource (though not clear who is behind it, UFC? others?) on information concerning MMA’s legal issues.  The site could do a better job of allowing you to directly write legislators involved in the process… if you live in New York, go to www.congress.org, look up your legislators by zip code, and send them an email letting them know you want to see the ban repealed.

Join a Facebook Group: There are already a couple of growing Facebook groups devoted to lifting the ban… try “Bring MMA To New York” or “Legalize MMA in New York State“.

MMA Legal Spot: In doing some research for this post, we stumbled on this new site from a New Jersey based attorney and fight fan.  Jerry looks like he’s got a great handle on the legal issues involved with some very detailed discussion.

(Note on photo above: The photo is from a ceremony retiring the original Madison Square Garden boxing ring after 82 years in 2007.  It’s time for a cage to replace the ring!)