Milwaukee Youth Produce Anti-Graffiti PSAs
The Milwaukee Department of Neighborhood Services Anti-Graffiti Program launched an anti-graffiti public radio message contest to deter youth involvement in graffiti vandalism as part of its 2009 Graffiti Hurts® grant. Youth ages 13 to 18 were invited to write a 30-second anti-graffiti PSA and submit it to the City. Winners voiced their own ads which were used on-air during a six-month campaign. Listen to a winning PSA.
"Using the right message, in the right way and through the right media was a proactive way to educate young people on the negative consequences of graffiti," says Sharon Blando, DNS Anti-Graffiti Coordinator, who spearheaded the initiative. "These announcements reminded youth that graffiti vandalism is a poor decision and harmful to the community." Keep American Beautiful grant funds were used to pay for initial radio airtime, which was supplemented by City funds.
A PSA display ad was also incorporated into the radio station's website with a dedicated link to the City's Anti-Graffiti web page. During the contest, posters were also displayed on several Milwaukee County bus transit shelters with the "Graffiti is Wrong in any Language" slogan, created by students at the Milwaukee School of Languages.
"Every anti-graffiti program needs to focus on the educational component," says Blando. "Stopping graffiti before it happens is vital. "Educating youth that the graffiti they see on buildings is an act of vandalism, aids in preventing the crime from expanding and stopping it before it starts," she adds. The City's anti-graffiti program incorporates the "three E's": education, eradication, and enforcement. According to Blando, "The educational component is a valued and often times underutilized part of the program. It only works when all the prongs are being employed."
During the campaign, January through April 2010, the number of graffiti incidents reported to the hotline decreased 29 percent compared to the number of reports the previous year. Although this decrease was not solely the result of the PSA program, the City believes that the program did accomplish the goal of making students aware that graffiti is wrong.
