Letter: Madera winning graffiti fight (Aug. 23)
After watching the news last week about the graffiti in Fresno, it reminded me of how little graffiti we have in Madera now. I am not a “letter to the editor” person, but this is such a big deal, I could not resist the nagging feeling that we as a city have accomplished a very large task and should all be told about it.
Let’s call it the “Yes We Can” story!
A few years ago, a man named Manuel Ruiz was hired by the Madera Redevelopment Agency as code enforcement officer, and the graffiti program was placed in his area of responsibility. The city had a crew that daily went out to remove graffiti. On a good month, the crew maybe stayed even with the taggers. Maybe.
Then, Manuel hired Tim and Christina. And my, how things have changed! This is where my story takes shape. Let’s call Manuel, Tim and Christina the GAC (Graffiti Abatement Crew).
With the help of a consultant hired by the city, they realized it would take a bigger crew to do the job. The trio began to build the crew. The key, folks, turned out to be you, me and anybody else who cared enough to join in.
Guess what? Today, more than 800 citizens are involved. The GAC asked the citizens to chip in. They held meetings, formed teams, have captains. Today, you are hard pressed to spot the graffiti. Oh yes, there is still graffiti here and there, but not like it was before. In essence, people, you are the ones who have defeated the taggers. They know now that if they are caught, they are punished. Not a slap-on-the-wrist punishment, thanks to the efforts of the police, the District Attorney’s Office and the courts.
This whole plan evolved because of you. It’s not too late to get involved. Graffiti is not a one-time thing, it’s ongoing. But you have shown everyone, everywhere it can be done. So all you people who are a part of the 800, stand up, be proud and let out a big hooray!
I am proud of us, and you should be, too. If this has inspired you to join in, simply call Manuel, Tim or Christina at 661-5110.
I have signed my name because I live by an oath of truth. This is not intended to be political. Trust me, this is a true happening of the graffiti program.
Jack Perialas,
Madera
Proud of what? This whole spending spree the county of Madera has made is not the cause for the “dying” of graffiti. I’m disappointed that it took this much of my tax money and these many people to slow, not stop, the rate of graffiti that is happening. The people that committed the graffiti are the ones that brought it to a halt. Your group as well as graffiti abatement and “T.A.G.” are not as magical as they seem to be. Graffiti was a trend within the kids attending school and that trend has passed. That’s all it was. While there are still graffiti painters around the city, the ones that take pride in their town, the so callled taggers that made my town ugly with their writing on walls are gone. They moved on to some thing else. They found a new “cool” thing to do thanks to the media not to you or your group.