Hateful Graffit at Ft Hamilton Subway Station
The Fort Hamilton F/G subway station has seen an uptick in hateful graffiti.
Who is responsible to clean this graffiti? How do we avoid it in the first place?
Recent tags include swastikas in black and hot pink sharpie. A well-meaning straphanger etched over one swastika writing, “no swastikas on my platform.” These have since been hidden by a poster advertising Annie.
Yet more tags appeared in other locations. A request made to (or by?) a prolific graffiti vandalizer reads: “Backfat wanna find Hell with me?” Below, a command we’d prefer not to post on this blog, and which shouldn’t be seen by children, is written in silver paint near the subway map.
The Ft Hamilton station isn’t the only one affected by graffiti. According to the Straphangers Campaign, substantial graffiti is up 7% at station platforms since last year.
These tags aren’t innocuous. They’re violent and hateful. Is it enough to paint over graffiti? Does that offer a clean palate for new vandalizers? Is graffiti an indicator for an uptick in crime?
Graffiti vandalizers can be charged with a Class A misdemeanor, a Class E felony if the damage exceeds $250, or a Class D felony if the damage exceeds $1,500.
Don’t try to stop a crime in progress. Instead, call 911 for crimes in progress, or call 311 to provide information regarding graffiti vandalism.
