'Censored': Viral Cranford Breakdancer Appears At Meeting After Filing Free Speech Lawsuit

CRANFORD, NJ — Resident Will Thilly didn't talk at all in his first appearance at a Township Committee meeting on Tuesday after filing a lawsuit alleging violations of free speech against local leaders.

The former Committee member candidate and continued activist calling for transparency throughout the community used his entire five minutes of allotted public comment time to film himself and dance with the help of others.

Thilly filed a lawsuit on Nov. 24 alleging officials of violating his First Amendment right after his demonstration involving a beach ball was interrupted by Mayor Terrence Curran calling a recess at the meeting on Nov. 10. Thilly and his legal team argued that this is just one of many cases where his access to free speech was blocked.

On Tuesday night, Thilly entered the meeting in a tuxedo with a top hat and bow tie, complete with a large sign around his neck that said "censored."

Another attendee in a motorized wheelchair wearing a wrestling mask filmed Thilly and aided him in his display. The two danced together to "PYT (Pretty Young Thing)" by Michael Jackson as it rang out from a phone in the room before Thilly removed his top hat and "censored" tag and continued to parade around.

The demonstration then shifted to Thilly hitching a ride on his masked partner's lap as they rode together to and from the podium.

Nothing was said during the entire five minutes by anyone in the room until Curran alerted Thilly that his time had come to a close. A few in the seating area behind the podium then directed their applause to Thilly as he left the floor.

A fellow resident then walked up to the lectern and called the demonstration a "circus act" before he proceeded with his own concern regarding a new topic.

"We appreciate the increased engagement from First Amendment advocates statewide, and their participation at the meeting in support of Mr. Thilly is a meaningful sign of progress" his attorney, Anders Wenstrand, said. "Their involvement represents an important contribution to the dialogue moving ahead."

Under the new lawsuit, Thilly and his legal team are also alleging violations of the New Jersey Constitution, the New Jersey Civil Rights Act, and the Open Records Meeting Act on different occasions.

Of the principal gripes behind his continued demonstrations is the $55 million January 2024 bond referendum that was approved and that, Thilly said, was supposed to only raise tax bills by an average of "four hundred bucks on an average assessed home" while simultaneously enriching facilities and projects for the schools in the area.

Thilly is also looking to advance the lawsuit he and a group of attorneys have to nullify a 30-year, multi-million dollar tax break given to the Walnut developer.

On Sept. 2, he garnered hundreds of thousands of views across social media platforms following his breakdance demonstration to raise awareness over what he says is the "resident-funded overdevelopment of Cranford."

Patch has reached out the Township for comment following Tuesday night's meeting and is yet to hear back.

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