Graffiti Wars II: The Empire Strikes Back

Amid layoffs, public jobs getting contracted out and a looming lockout of city workers, the city is hiring three new employees to fight in the war against graffiti. Naturally, the appointments aren’t without controversy (we are talking about Rob Ford and graffiti, after all): Adam Vaughan says the fund that will pay the new hires’ salaries is intended for beautification projects, not anti-graffiti crusaders. Still, the positions don’t sound like a bad idea—two of the staff will be working with artists, businesses and at-risk youth to keep graffiti in designated areas rather than locking up street artists. It’s the timing that’s the issue: nobody wants to hear that the city is forking out hundreds of thousands of dollars for graffiti fighters when so many other city workers are being shown the door. Read the entire story [Globe and Mail] »