When keeping the law borders on ridiculous... Let kids be kids!!
By kbkbooks
@kbkbooks (7022)
Canada
October 14, 2007 2:37pm CST
Today I came across the following story:
"Child’s chalk doodle draws graffiti citation
Parents of 6-year-old artist warned to clear away flower or face fine"
Associated Press - Oct. 13, 2007
NEW YORK - Chalk it up to New York City's crackdown on graffiti.
A 6-year-old child's chalk sketches on her family's stoop brought her parents a graffiti-removal notice that threatened a $300 fine.
First-grader Natalie Shea said her mom got a ticket for graffiti and it wasn't even graffiti.
"It was art, very nice art," Natalie said.
But a neighbor in Brooklyn's Park Slope neighborhood saw it differently and dialed the complaint line.
The family was sent a form letter of complaint giving the family 45 days to clean up the graffiti.
Natalie's mom said she'll act more quickly to wash off the doodles in the future.
As for the offending blue flower, it was erased by a heavy rain.
3 people like this
6 responses
@dnatureofdtrain (5273)
• Janesville, Wisconsin
14 Oct 07
That is really sad and pathetic.. But even a flower to someone a flower can be offending, and seen as attracting bad company.. unfortionately.. I think its wrong to call sidewalk chalking by children graffit, and I think it is a good way to encourage a young budding artist.. Maybe the child and mother need to have the last laugh. Start taking pictures of all the childs doodles and save them, and later they could make a webpage showing off the doodles, or even publish a small book, to earn back money from those fines, or send them into drawing contests, There are actually, competitions and areas that will allow adults and children to doodle, and people do put money and coins on these doodled works of art.. And yes, it is in New york! Because that is where I saw this. So finding those competitions, and allowing the daughter to enter, maybe a good practice too, maybe eventually they will not see the daughters chalking as grafiti, as out of this bad experience could come good recognitiion for a young budding artist, and even other artists joining together with this young girl to repeal the cities chalking as graffiti outlook. - DNatureofDTrain
2 people like this
@lightningMD (5931)
• United States
15 Oct 07
How stupid...and what a creep for a neighbor. I certainly hope the city realizes how ridiculous this was and doesn't bother to give credence to these kids of calls into their hot lines. I would hope they would have better things to do with their time.
@kw_1250 (17)
• United States
15 Oct 07
And its actions like this that land a lot of innocent people in jail....
I am lost as to how the neighbor was able to do this. If the chalk flower is not on her property or public property, what can he/she complain about? Its like me saying I want my neighbor to repaint her house as its pink and orange color offends me.
Although there are times I wish I could do that.
@sqiangwei (1)
• China
15 Oct 07
This too absurd that thechildren it sympathize ah.no person diffucult to be fair
1 person likes this
