Senseless Tagging

It's gone now. Street Services came and removed this graffiti and that across the street. The police came by before and took pictures. There is a stain on the sidewalk in front of the stonewall. The purple paint left a bluish-gray shadow in the runoff from the blast of the jets that removed the vandal's mark.

Tagging is so senseless. This particular act of vandalism across from our beloved Newman Park aroused anger and a sense of urgency to do something - whatever that something was. For me, it was just alerting police and the anti-graffiti people at the City.

The police told neighbors that this kind of tagging goes on between 2 and 5 in the morning. Who wants to do a neighborhood watch then? In exchanges of emails I asked whether the police could add some extra patrols. No response has come from our City's finest.

This corner is well lit at night by strong street lights. However, the illumination offered no deterrent. We could organize a neighborhood watch - but there is already one in place. It's hard to have vigilance when most of us except for a few restless souls are asleep. Even the restless ones toss and turn in bed or watch the blue tube glow.

Neighbors do care and do watch out for each other. One of our neighbors was recently visited by her schizophrenic sister. The sister went out for cigarettes and walked down the middle of the street thinking that she was taking pictures. Having no camera was an unimportant detail to her. Within minutes, firemen, an ambulance and the police were on the scene. Neighbors had paid attention, cared and called emergency services. There is no lack of caring especially in this neighborhood.

So what can be done about tagging? Call the police. Get Street Services to remove it ASAP after the police have made their report. Don't let any tagging linger. Don't give taggers or gangs of taggers any footholds. Stay vigilant when we can. Care. Really care for each other and the homes of each other and the neighborhood where we all live.

If there are other suggestions, I'd like to hear it.