Graffiti Vandalism in Riverside Winners were recognized at a
City Council meeting on May 21, 2013. View the winning Poster
Contest entries HERE. View the winning Video Contest entries
HERE. Take Back the Wall The City of Riverside spends more than
$1.3 million each year for Graffiti abatement. In addition,
money is spent by other public agencies, utility companies, and
private property owners to remove graffiti from their
properties. Nationwide, the American public spends nearly $12
billion each year to fight graffiti. What is Graffiti? Graffiti
consists of inscriptions, slogans and drawings scratched,
scribbled or painted on a wall or other public or private
surface. Today, graffiti is a sign of urban decay. James Q.
Wilson, Shattuck Professor of Government at Harvard University
and author of “Thinking About Crime,” together with George L.
Kelling, a research fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of
Government Harvard, first introduced the world to the Broken
Window Theory. The theory contends that if a broke