Carl Zehr Square renovations

[dtkvictim]

Fortunately, you don't get to gatekeep culture! Whether some young artist wants to paint a "throwup" under a bridge, a more established artist wants to do a detailed piece uptown, a kid wants to scribble on a bench or us Indigenous folk want to throw red paint on white colonial racist settler relics (statues, churches) it's all fair game. That's what culture is.

You are right, except for the phrasing of the bolded portion. It is a part of culture, but not culture in and of itself. Also cultural is levels of "respect" for democracy, private property, public property, and government (constituent) spending. I think that mainstream Canadian positions on these values view both general tagging graffiti and breaking the Carl Zehr sign as vandalism, and inherently destructive.

The intersection of what you and I have both described as cultural components becomes increasingly important in the broader picture of building a livable urban environment. If I'm to accept smaller living spaces and no private outdoor property, then it should be met with a public realm that provides at least equal value. But when I step outside and see how offensive to my senses our urban environment can be, I know we definitely aren't there. Obviously what I'm describing goes way beyond basic graffiti, but it's a small and understandable piece of the puzzle.