Last month, a few punks with a can of spray paint made their way through Pointe-Claire Village and left their so-called tag – a mark, essentially – wherever the mood struck them.
By the time their little spree was over, they had defaced stop signs, store fronts, brick walls and, of course, the large mural that depicts how life in the village has changed over the centuries. The mural was unveiled earlier this year. It takes up an entire wall of the now-closed grocery store on Lakeshore Rd.
This little gang of hoodlums – or maybe it was just one or two irresponsible delinquents – probably thought they were cool, defiant, anti-establishment. Who knows what went through their brains? The bottom line is whatever they thought they were, they’re not.
They are nothing more than stupid, disrespectful criminals. The last thing they are are artists.
They painted two letters, what looked like “VC,” everywhere they went. A few readers online posted comments claiming they knew who was behind this hooliganism. The so-called “crew” might have a name – several, in fact, according to readers. Of course, this only means they have done this all before, probably a few times. But to what end?
Over at Pointe-Claire city hall, officials have commissioned a cleanup crew to erase the scribble, which they have done with efficiency. The quick action is said to contribute to dissuading these thugs from targeting the area again. The idea is to deprive them of their bragging rights.
There is some merit to this approach, I suppose. But wouldn’t you want them to be caught by the authorities? Someone has to know who these guys are. According to readers’ comments on the initial story that we posted on this website, the “VC” tag is not new. Someone needs to pick up the phone and give the city and/or the police some information. Enough. This is our community they are defacing.
Let me know what you think. Feel free to add a comment below.
Brenda O’Farrell
Senior editor
West Island Gazette
There is only one way to combat the scourge of graffiti.
Ban the sale of spray paint. Why not? I wonder how many people who occasionally use it for legitimate means would actually miss it if it were not available? very few I think; especially if the know the reason is to combat this vandalism.
I personally think that the Singapore approach is suitable; Simply put a public caning. Enough of this crap that it is artistic expression. If solicitedor commissioned by a town, property owner etc, by all means but if it is simply a matter of pseudo vandalism, throw the book at them.As I understand it, there is very little gratuitous grafiti in Singapore.
As has happened in the past, it wouldn’t surprise me if a few bleeding hearts, or one of these idiot’s mother’s, comes out and starts bleating that what these taggers are doing is art or simply “expressing themselves”.
What I don’t understand is how the police are so ineffective. I can find a ton of info on any graffiti crew in Montreal with all of twenty minutes worth of internet searching. Are the police that technologically inept? go on youtube and type any graffiti artists tag and see what comes up. Or simply clean up a problem wall and set up a stakeout. The police have been very lackadaisical in there approach to catching taggers…I wonder if all the money being made off of the graffiti artists backs plays a role? (cleaning companies, NDG fine policy etc.)
The Vagabond Crew has been tagging in Montreal for over 15 years. It’s most prolific member goes by Castro. Their ‘handiwork’ has been featured in The Gazette in the past, most notably when they vandalized Peel Metro overnight in the late 90s.
Members of the crew have been repeatedly arrested and fined however this has done nothing to dissuade them. The truth is the police know exactly who did this but there is unfortunately very little they can do.
I live in Pierrfonds between Sources rd and St.Johns rd. There’s this tagger out here who has defaced alot of walls and buildings recently. Although they are not anything old or historic, these buildings still don’t need this juvenile nonsense written all over them. This tagger goes by the name of “Slave” and that’s what he writes everywhere around here. I’d like to get my hands on him and spray him with his paint from head to foot.
you guys think that its just a bunch of little kids going around doing this. its a lifestyle, i know people who still do it to this day who have their own family, their 9 to 5s, and kids to feed. youd understand what its like to have that feeling of people saying oh hey thats you! ive seen you everywhere. but fortunately i came to the realization that its going to get me nowhere in life. VC stands for vicious cartel. you cant stop em. hense the name. dont try and say that you are better than them, or theyre horrible people. at the end of the day, we all wipe our own ass, so grow up and learn how to deal with things you cant handle.
Ahhhhh, my lovely graffiti idiots…
There aren’t many things that get me as pissed off as tagging… I know: Get a life.
Messy. Almost all identical. Poorly done. Amateur graffiti really sucks.
An issue I have is that I have heard defendants of tagging describe their friends as “artists”. Really?
If you like attention then at least try and create something the other 99.9999 % of the population (non vandals) might be able to read.
A message. A call to action. Art.
Something more than a doodle that screams: “I am rushing this because I am scared and it is dark outside!”
The scribbles that left behind on walls and overpasses are art at it’s lowest form, and to top it off, it is done on property
that does not belong to the “artist”…
As one wise philosopher said when confronted by taggers who claimed that : “the world was their canvas”.
“You love graffiti? Let me graffiti your face.”
SOLUTIONS?
1. Ban the sale of spray paint to minors. (If you are over 18 and still vandalizing, you win an award for being a moron and deserve to be able to buy spray paint. Yeah you.)
2. Make fines for actually getting caught match the cost of the crime.
3. Encourage the misguided Picassos to sign up for art classes. Maybe the city can offer up a graffiti wall as a peace sign?
4. And make sure the stuff is wiped clean ASAP. Like all garbage, the stench gets worse when left to linger.
It might also make sense to train the city workers in the art of graffiti removal. Paying an outside company $70,000
to clean up a mess that can be made by anyone does not sit well with me…(Paranoid, I know)
Finally, hug a graffiti guy near you and let them them know they are special.
Maybe they will feel admired and realize that true love doesn’t come in a can.
Art is real. Graffiti is really bad.
It is essential that we enforce a law that will place a considerable financial fine upon any and all individuals who deliberately destroys the property of another party. No person has the right to tag the property of another individual and claim it as being an expression of credible artistic freedom.
A building must never be mistaken for being a blank canvas unless the owner of the property has officially provided and expressed his consent to spray paint and cover his personal property.
The fine imposed at the graffiti lawbreaker should be in an amount that will financially secure the total monetary sum to defer all costs encumbered by having to professionally restore a property to its previous state.
Should the same individual break the law with a repeated offense then a new fine should be placed upon the law breaker that will guarantee that the cost for having the property professionally cleaned is covered and that individual should be removed from society and thus be incarcerated for a year.
It is a deliberate crime of defiance to avidly destroy private property.
There should be no exception or loopholes when dealing with these lawbreakers.
If municipalities were to offer a financial reward as an incentive for disclosing the identities of these lawbreakers then possibly the authorities would be able to grab these hoodlums with more ease.
This is to Brenda O’Farrell, arent you supposed to be a sort of reporter? You sounded more like a person who cant control their emotions. Why dont you report the facts and leave out the name calling (punks, hoodlums, stupid, criminals, thugs)? I can tell this vandalism really upsets you but guess what? There is literally nothing you can do about it so continue to write behind you computer screen with your false sense of making a difference, thank you.
Pot calling the kettle black, don’t you think, “Letsgo”? Her name is attached to her blog but you hide behind a less than imaginative pseudonym. This is a blog and if you are unable to discern between the two, then perhaps you should refrain from commenting until such time as you are a little more internet media savvy.
Hoodlum, punk, criminal (albeit very petty crime) and thug (giving these morons more street credit than they warrant) are all perfectly acceptable labels to attach to individuals who see nothing wrong with defacing the property of others. Does this topic touch home, Letsgo? Is that why you border on incoherent?
I cant say that I agree with this kind of vandalism either but arent there more important issues within the community that need addressing? P.S thanks for erasing my first comment and not giving me the oppertunity to voice my opinion
In response to “A reader” in the October 10th editorial, regarding not all the graffiti artists are irresponsible kids. Why then does this defacing of property, that does not belong to you, take place in the dead of night to make sure you don’t get caught. Why would you not apply this art form to paper and have it displayed in a gallery or the like. Because what ytou are doing is wrong and does not deserve respect because vandalism does not constitute art.