The City Council approved an ordinance Thursday that would punish parents or guardians of graffiti vandalism with a $250 fine or community service. Originally, Daley wanted this fine to be higher, but it has settled at $250 with the option of community service if you are financially unable to pay.
Alderman Edward Burke also tried to push for a six-month driver’s license suspension for convicted taggers. Those who are 16 and under will have to wait until they turn 18 to get their license.
The amount of graffiti has risen steadily this summer. “In May and June alone, the city’s Graffiti Blasters teams removed more than 28,000 instances of the outlawed art, about 2,700 pieces more than the same time last year,” according to the Department of Streets and Sanitation.
Graffiti artists say they expect to do the time if they’re caught, but they’d rather the city provide them with legal walls instead of create deterrents.
Fausto Lopez, a Logan Square resident, believes the city’s efforts are worthless. He feels that “graffiti is a viable form of expression” and that the city supressing a type of cultural art. He suggests residents and businesses offer up their walls and provide taggers with more permission walls to use.
Personally, I find some graffiti to be really awesome. I love looking at murals I happen to pass while walking. But I do not enjoy seeing the window I’m trying to look out of while on the train tagged. It’s difficult to encourage one form of art without suppressing another. There are people who truly just love it. They’re not doing it to warn others, represent their colors or something negative. But then there are those who tag anything in sight because they feel they have the right to.
I agree that there should be permission walls, but I don’t think that will stop taggers from tagging business windows, people’s garages, random walls, etc. If graffiti artists want to be taken seriously, petition for more permission walls. But I don’t think businesses and residents who don’t offer up their walls should be punished by having some ignorant kid spray their doors.
No matter what the city does, tagging and graffiti will always exist. Increase the fines all you want, but they won’t stop. Most times they’re not caught. There will always be ignorant people who feel the rules do not apply to them and if they want to say “Latin Kings were here” they will.
Do we offer up our walls so more people can do it legally? I don’t know. If they can do it legally why should they censor what they put on there then? Something needs to be done, but as far as I know, it’s going to take a long time to regulate something as big as this.
Rules were made to be broken and they will continue to be broken.
