It?s amazing what a beautiful city can do for the morale of its inhabitants. When living in a beautiful city, people are more likely to feel valued by their city leaders ? and they in turn will be more motivated to preserve their city?s beauty. In this case, looks aren?t simply superficial; they affect the way people feel about themselves and the city they live in. There are many things that can be done to beautify cities, including community art projects, street murals, and natural parks. However, all of these things can be destroyed through graffiti. Recently, a movement has begun which focuses less on cleaning up graffiti once the damage has be done, and more on anti-graffiti measures like anti graffiti spray and anti-graffiti film.
How Damaging Is Graffiti, Really?
You may not think that graffiti is a common problem; unfortunately, in this case you would be wrong. According to the Bureau of Justice, graffiti makes up 35% of all property vandalism, making it the most common type of property vandalism in America. Some would say that graffiti is another piece of the community art projects that frequent many cities. However, the fact is that only 5% of graffiti is what we would call ?pieces?, or larger visual works, with 80% of graffiti is simply tagging. Furthermore, 10% of all graffiti is gang-related. This is not the kind of ?artwork? that anyone wants in their city, especially around children. Its message is not at all but positive, but completely negative and often aesthetically unappealing.
What Are The Consequences Of Graffiti?
Graffiti, obviously, can destroy everything from community art projects to the city beautification projects that taxpayer money goes towards. Gang-related graffiti promotes criminal activity and can even incite violence. Another issue that comes from graffiti is the cost involved with removing it. In most cases, graffiti must be removed, and it can cost a lot of money to do so; a tagged street sign alone can cost $200 to $500 to clean. Many tagged traffic signs ? 75% — must be replaced entirely. It?s been estimated that graffiti cleanup alone can cost taxpayers $1 t $3 per year, which totals as a minimum of $319 million!
How Can We Prevent Graffiti?
On a practical level, removing graffiti within 24 to 48 hours of its placement is one of the most effective ways to prevent further graffiti. However, that still costs money. It?s more cost-effective to employ materials that will prevent graffiti entirely. These include films and graffiti resistant coatings. Some of these coatings are also UV protectants, and end up being fade resistant and adhesive resistant!
A beautiful city can boost people?s confidence, and ultimately fight the negative feelings and traditions that lead to graffiti. Furthermore, everyone involved will feel better knowing that less money is being spent on graffiti cleanup!
