[mobglob-discuss] G8 graffiti busted

[Bella]

Here's what some of us in Vancouver do for rallies, marches and general
urban beautification.  We buy those big chunky sidewalk chalks (any
toystore or dollar store has them el cheapo) and we draw big peace signs,
anarchy signs, slogans, etc ALL OVER THE PLACE. This works really good in
a march, cuz you can hand out pieces of chalk to people and put up
graffiti all the way along the route.  The chalk is temporary, doesnt
stain, will wash off in the rain and theres no property damage. (the
colours are very pretty too). Its a pretty harmless method to get the word
out, and nobody has to clean it up. Just be sure to dust off your hands
when the cops roll by ! I dont know what 'crime' this would fall under,
but who knows, if hurling teddy bears over a fence is a crime ...... You
draws your pictures, you takes your chances. 

Solidarity and all that jazz,
Bella
PS: Sorry to post the whole original email, I'm sending it to the G8
listserve as well and I wanted it in full.

--- Tom_Childs at Douglas.BC.CA wrote:
~~~ Terrorism comes to Calgary, Alberta~~~
"...political missives so potent they must be snuffed within hours of
discovery."  Hopefully indymedia will be able to put up a "snuff film" of
the 'graffiti busters' at work scrubbing sidewalks.

Globe and Mail, May 12
Canadian Press

Calgary, Alta. - The messages, scrawled on sidewalks or spray-painted on
walls, are short and simple: "No G8." But for Calgary's graffiti busters,
one cop and dozens of volunteers, they are political missives so potent 
they
must be snuffed within hours of discovery.

Constable Marcel Dubois, the Calgary Police Service's graffiti specialist,
leads the efforts to spot anti-G8 graffiti, analyze it for clues to 
sources,
and then remove it.

"What we are trying to do is identify the persons who are ultimately
responsible and if indeed they are attached to a particular group of
protesters that Calgary police and RCMP need to concern themselves with,"
Constable Dubois says.

He and the Graffiti Response Information Team (GRIT) are chasing down
anti-G8 markings on buildings, sidewalks and billboards throughout 
Calgary.
So far, they've tracked down, recorded and removed 19.

According to Barry Davidson, who heads the volunteer group GRIT, police 
have
yet to charge an anti-G8 graffitist with mischief. "We are trying to track
down enough information to go after some people," said Mr. Davidson, a
former Calgary police officer.

The first piece of graffiti was spotted just one day after last July's
announcement that leaders of the Group of Eight highly industrialized
countries would hold their next meeting in Canada. The most recent was 
found
last week when someone wrote G8 with an X over it on a Global Petroleum 
Show
billboard. The message also included a large black dot.

"The significance of the black dot, I haven't been able to ascertain at 
the
present time," Constable Dubois said. "It is appearing on other outdoor
advertising as well. The investigation is continuing on that one."

Unlike most urban graffiti, these anti-G8 slogans are neither artistic nor
sophisticated. The most complicated one so far was found last November on 
a
long banner hung from a bridge over Calgary's busiest freeway, Deerfoot
Trail. It read "G8 Not Gr8".

GRIT volunteers are concerned Calgarians, many of them prison guards, who
help police year-round with reporting, recording and removing all kinds of
graffiti. When a culprit is caught and charged, the prosecutor asks the
court to assess cleanup costs as part of the fine.

Constable Dubois and Mr. Davidson say it's important to paint over or
sandblast such vandalism soon after it's discovered because members of the
graffiti subculture are proud, even obsessed, with their work.

"It's a badge of honour to put a piece of graffiti up and have people 
drive
by and wonder, 'How did they do that without getting caught?'" Mr. 
Davidson
said. "The higher they can put it, the more visible they can make it, the
bigger the score it is for them."

Mr. Davidson has handpicked 12 volunteers from 35 GRIT members to work a
rigorous schedule starting one week before the G8 meeting begins. They 
plan
to work with police from an undisclosed downtown office, with some shifts
starting around 3 a.m.




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talk-action=nothing

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