Young Democrat’s Clean Graffiti to “Stop the Insanity”

Volunteers, sponges and cleaning supplies were at work Sunday

afternoon as the Young Democrats cleaned up graffiti around the

Lory Student Center and other parts of campus.

The cleanup crew of five removed Saddam Hussein posters backed

with permanent adhesive on the Natural Resource Building, as well

as the Clark Building. They also cleaned up the spray-painted words

“I love Bush” on the student center’s east sidewalk.

“Some of the spray paint didn’t come off as well as we would

have liked,” said the group’s president, junior political science

major Ashleigh McBeth. The group is looking into other ways to at

least cover or fade those parts.

The effort, named “Stop the Insanity,” was organized in response

to recent controversy surrounding graffiti on campus, particularly

about the College Republicans’ “Campus Insanity” graffiti

project.

The “Campus Insanity” project is a way for students to express

their criticism of anti-conservative messages on campus through a

collection of photos on the groups Web site at

www.csurepublicans.com.

Josh Metten, the Young Democrat’s vice president, said “Stop the

Insanity” also stemmed from the group’s “collective desire to

maintain the beauty of this campus.”

McBeth said the group designed “Stop the Insanity” to have a

hands-on approach.

“We feel that this is a problem, so we decided to take action,”

said Doug Knight, the group’s treasurer and a junior political

science major.

Metten invited members of his group and also extended an

invitation to the College Republicans, who did not attend the

clean-up event.

While both groups have spoken of graffiti projects on campus,

Metten and McBeth said that “Stop the Insanity” is different. The

difference is that the Young Democrat’s want all graffiti cleaned

up, regardless of any political messages behind the destruction,

they said.

The group wants to continue the effort to stop any unsightly

graffiti as long as it is within their means.

“It’s not a one-time political move,” Metten said.

While cleaning up the graffiti, McBeth said they were very

cautious with the surface beneath the markings to not cause more

damage to the property.

Volunteers scraped off aged adhesive using scrubbing pads and

putty knives. They used cleaning product, Goof-off, from Facilities

Management to soak off areas with spray paint.