Republic of Slowjamastan

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Republic of Slowjamastan

The Republic of Slowjamastan is a micronation in Imperial County, Southern California, United States. It was founded on December 1, 2021 by Randy Williams, a slow jam DJ also known as R Dub!. The land is an empty desert plot along State Route 78.

What is a micronation?
A micronation is a self-declared country that acts like a sovereign state but has no legal recognition from other countries.

Where is Slowjamastan?
- It sits on an 11.07-acre desert plot between Ocotillo Wells and Westmorland, about 14 miles southwest of the Salton Sea and roughly 100 miles from San Diego, with the US–Mexico border about 36.8 miles to the south.
- There are no real buildings on the land. A large border sign, a border control post, and an open desk serve as the sultan’s office in the place called Dublândia, the claimed capital.

Independence and status
- Slowjamastan was declared independent on December 1, 2021, after Williams visited Molossia, another micronation, in August 2021 and bought the land in October for $19,000.
- The nation follows the Montevideo Convention’s criteria for statehood, but it has no legal international recognition.

Government and laws
- The micronation is run by Randy Williams, who says he rules as a dictator and “occasional democracy,” with input from a virtual parliament.
- Its laws are said to be based on everyday annoyances Williams faced growing up in the United States. Examples include prohibitions on Crocs, mumble rap, people who put their feet on the dashboard, and eating string cheese by biting into it.

Currency, citizenship, and symbols
- Slowjamastan prints its own currency, the duble, and issues passports with quotes from hip hop artists.
- People can apply for citizenship and cabinet positions online. As of July 2024, more than 19,000 people were listed as Slowjamastanis.

Public life and presence
- Slowjamastan has participated in micronation events such as MicroCon 2022 (Las Vegas), MicroCon 2023 (Joliet, Illinois) and MicroCon EU 2023 (Ypres, Belgium). Williams also appeared as a guest at a 2024 NATO summit in Washington, D.C., representing the micronation.
- As of February 2025, the land itself is not inhabited, though the entity continues to exist as a declared micronation with its own symbols and governance.