Anti-Graffiti Task Unit To Disband?

Photo: Bluejake

According to the Daily News, the NYPD may be considering disbanding the street anti-graffiti and vandalism unit that was created during the Giuliani administration. Why? The NYPD is looking into maximizing the efficiency of the different police squads; the anti-graffiti cops would be folded into the Transit Bureau vandals squad. However, the DN reports that some police officers are concerned they are going to be chasing "crooks who steal copper wires from subway stations" versus spray paint-toting "hoodlums." No changes have been finalized - it's simply at the discussion level. Gothamist finds this an interesting look at how manpower is deployed on the NYPD. Could shifting the number of cops on the transit vandals beat help prevent subway crime? Probably...which makes us wonder if transit cops will be chasing photobloggers taking pictures on the subway as well as calling in photobloggers to give up the goods on graf they capture around the city.

Check out the city's Anti-Graffiti Task Force. Graffiti is one of the top problems noted by community leaders in a quality of life study. And the NY Times profiled some of the city's most lyrical street artists.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in News on August 19, 2004 9:46 AM

Comments [rss]

simon

one nice effect of tagging (the less publicly approved arm of graff) is the reduction of those very sterile and culturally homogenous facades that are slowly taking over the city. Would you rather have NYC as it is, or does the slow expansion of Urban Outfitters/ J Crew/ Whole Foods/ Starbucks/ and etc. look good as it is? I'm not complaining about the TYPES of stores that are buying out the unique City landscape (thats a different argument) but just that they all look so similar and so boring! Parts of NYC look like parts of Seattle look like parts of Burlington look like parts of London.............. that ain't culture.

Graffito

I for one happen to really like graffiti. I hope it comes back and smothers everything.

derek

grafitti is a borderline issue for me, because some of it can be artistic and actually improve things. i'm generally against random tagging that looks like useless scribble, but have found some of it to end up having a pollock-esque, mural-like effect when viewed together. however, whatever glass-eroding spray has been used on subway car windows of late is truly wrong; you can't even clean that off. and i do sympathize with personal property issues. some things should be left alone.

as far as the mta chasing photobloggers, i've already had a few minor run-ins. a few months back, while kneeling down shooting a train link closeup, a woman approached me suspiciously and asked what i was doing. i said "just taking some pictures." she looked worried and moved away. a few minutes later, two cops showed up and asked me about it. i told them it was an art thing, and they said "that's what we figured, but we have to check it out if someone asks us to."

onyl a few days ago, i was near the edge of a platform shooting into a tunnel when one of two transit workers started asking me what i was doing. i pointed out i wasn't beyind the line i was supposed to be, and asked if there was a law in effect yet. he then switched tactics, acting as though he was on my side and just warning me the cops upstairs would probably arrest me, what with "all this terrorist stuff going on." i briefly considered talking about freedom, fear, and exactly when "all this terrorist stuff" was supposed to end, and how are we supposed to live our lives in the meantime. however, having already gotten enough shots, i smiled and walked away. it's still their domain after all, and the rights aren't quite so clear cut down there.

a grafitti-covered doorway, as well as the train link shot, and other subway shots, are on my photoblog www.ocularspectra.com. i'll be continuing to shoot as much as possible in the subway as long as i can, because i love it.