Distinctions need to be made between graffiti and vandalism
By Lethbridge Herald on October 9, 2024.
Editor:
On Sept. 2, Stan Adamus wrote that graffiti artists are criminals.
He proposes private businesses invest in technology to surveil people who buy spray paint (or other products that could cause mischief), and then turn over that data to the police, who would then allocate precious resources to investigate, arrest and advance punishment.
Mr. Adamus argues that city council was disingenuous and cynical for creating the graffiti clean-up fund, and suggests that council are enforcers.
I believe these perspectives are flawed in two fundamental respects. First, they fail to make meaningful distinctions between graffiti and vandalism, and second, his solution is a disproportionate response that would be beastly expensive to execute and is likely unlawful and undemocratic. Let’s flip this narrative.
When the Herald ran its article about council’s graffiti cleanup fund, unbeknownst to me, they illustrated the story with a photograph of a digital billboard on top of my downtown building, ruined by a local vandal and graffiti artist named Juice. Other parts of my building were also vandalized with graffiti.
The BRZ cleanup crew did a great job removing most of the graffiti, but sadly my expensive digital billboard was irreparably damaged and can’t be fixed. That sucks.
I’m annoyed with Juice. To add insult to injury, Juice did a trashy graffiti job. If he was going to wreck my stuff for the purpose of expression, I wish he would’ve at least put in some artistic effort.
Stan, I agree with you that vandalism in the form of graffiti is mischievous. And great news, Parliament agrees with us both! There are provisions in the criminal code about it.
But surely, we all know by now that graffiti is rarely just mischief for mischief’s sake. Sometimes it’s an expression of alienation from voices excluded from the larger social conversations. Sometimes it’s an expression of gang related territoriality that speaks to a breakdown in healthy relationships and the need to belong.
And sometimes graffiti is art.
Yes, it’s subversive and mischievous in its uncommissioned form of vandalism, but often, even in it’s vandal state, is artistic enough for us to feel it doesn’t always fit neatly into criminality.
Think of the commodification and sensensionalisation of street artists like Banksy, Basquiat, and Mr. Brainwash which have transformed some urban spaces, with the public responding so positively to it – even trying to buy it from the city workers directed to take it down.
Lethbridge city council did right in creating the graffiti clean-up fund, which has nothing to do with crime deterrence or police enforcement. And thank god for that! I don’t want council interpreting and enforcing the criminal code. I want them to stay in their lane with the Municipal Government Act. I also want council to divy up tax dollars for services that matter to our entire community, including me, Juice, my commercial tenants, and the citizens who live, work and enjoy the downtown core.
Most of all, I want city counci and Lethbridge citizens to appreciate that police enforcement and criminal charges are the last, most final, and most extreme kinds of response we can take to social problems in a just and democratic society. I
ndeed, LPS Sgt. Darroch pretty much said so at the Social Disorder Urban Crime Conference in Lethbridge.
His quote to the Herald on Sept 25 sums up this perspective on social disorder so nicely, “We cannot win this or solve this problem through enforcement or not enforcing the law at all.”
So balanced, so proportionate.
The Herald reported a while back that Juice got busted for vandalism. I’d like to know his story (which would be hard to hear if he’s behind bars). I’d be good with restitution, provided he has the capacity to pay it.
It’s the only part of your proposed plan I like, Stan. Restitution is truly realized when both parties are made whole by a process. Hey Juice, maybe you come help me tear down that now useless digital billboard? Or maybe we keep it and use your skills to turn it into a meaningful piece of public art that we both could be proud of? Maybe a piece of art that artistically expresses the dangers of surveillance or the consequence of a police state?
Jason Shriner
Lethbridge
23-22
Brilliant!
Well said.
And the police who work downtown also state that without deterrents, change will never happen. No one has the right to damage another persons property. We are tired of coming to work not knowing what we will find around our building or doorway. I couldn’t disagree with you more and I have to ask, do you even know what a police state is? I have worked in several, and I am not talking about Mexico for one, and we are far from a police state and lawlessness thrives downtown at a cost to business owners, the taxpayer and those who have had their vehicles damaged while shopping downtown.
You must have deep pockets and don’t care that downtown is dying as more business die or move and the taxpayers are paying millions from their property taxes to enable criminals and leadership fails us completely.
We have paid enough and are tired of watching our city be destroyed while we pay for it!