Peace, Love...And A Whole Lot Of Disrespect. Carroll Park War Memorial Graffitied Again

This past Sunday 

and after painstaking graffiti removal below

Every so often, the World War I Memorial, which stands in the middle of Carroll Park in Carroll Gardens, gets graffitied. And that is not ok. Defacing a memorial dedicated to those who sacrificed their lives in the service of this country is just so very wrong, even if the messages spray painted are of "love and peace."

On Sunday morning,  a Friends of Carroll Park volunteer reported the graffiti on one of the bronze plaques of the memorial and on one of the table and benches close by. 

Gary Dolan, the current president of Friends of Carroll Park commented:
"What remarkably stupid graffiti. A message of peace, love and 'Be good' transmitted by defacing a public park. Surprised they did not carve 'preserve nature' into the side of a tree."

Glenn Kelly, a long time member of the Friends group, who also happens to be my husband, immediately went to the park to clean off the paint. Glenn reported back:

"It took me about an hour to clean or cover up the spray paint which some young fools used to deface the park and the WW1 monument. We have many veterans who live here and perhaps families of those listed on the monument. This senseless act is so disrespectful to them.

I ask that all you parents teach your children to draw with chalk on the ground only. Please teach them that it is not OK to draw on the building and especially the monument. Please also help us in controlling the children who regularly trample and tear up the plants in our gardens. Our volunteers have invested a lot of time and spent a lot of money to plant and maintain these gardens. We are counting on you to supervise your children's activities and provide a good example. Please!"

Here is a bit of a history lesson, so that we may all appreciate the memorial's significance. To parents, please explain to your children that this is NOT o.k. And that starts with scribbling on the memorial with chalk.

From New York City's Parks Department web site:
"The monument consists of an 18-foot tall pink granite stele to which are mounted front and back bronze bas-reliefs of soldiers and sailors, crafted by Brooklyn-born sculptor Eugene H. Morahan (1869-1949). On either side are bronze honor rolls listing those who paid the supreme sacrifice for their country. The frontal image represents a soldier mourning his slain comrades while the rear composition’s central motif is that of a sailor on watch.
A gift to the City, the monument was commissioned by a local committee at a cost of $9,000 and dedicated in 1921. In 1994, as part of a $1.3 million upgrade of Carroll Park and playground, the monument, its sculptural reliefs, and commemorative plaques were fully restored."

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How Disrespectful! Someone Graffitied Carroll Park's World War One Memorial

The stenciled graffiti of a "Scream" mask on one of the bronze plaques of the Carroll Park World War 1 Memorial in Carroll Gardens must be a new low.  Yes, our park has seen its fair share of graffiti over the years, but defacing a memorial dedicated to those who sacrificed their lives in the service of this country, is so very wrong.
The vandal probably had no idea what the monument stands for, which makes it even sadder.

Here is a bit of a history lesson, so that we may all appreciate the memorial's significance. To parents, please explain to your children that this is NOT o.k. And that starts with scribbling on the memorial with chalk.

From New York City's Parks Department web site:
"The monument consists of an 18-foot tall pink granite stele to which are mounted front and back bronze bas-reliefs of soldiers and sailors, crafted by Brooklyn-born sculptor Eugene H. Morahan (1869-1949). On either side are bronze honor rolls listing those who paid the supreme sacrifice for their country. The frontal image represents a soldier mourning his slain comrades while the rear composition’s central motif is that of a sailor on watch.
A gift to the City, the monument was commissioned by a local committee at a cost of $9,000 and dedicated in 1921. In 1994, as part of a $1.3 million upgrade of Carroll Park and playground, the monument, its sculptural reliefs, and commemorative plaques were fully restored."

I encourage everyone to attend this year's Veterans Day Ceremony in Carroll Park scheduled for November 11 at 11 o'clock.  Not only is the annual ceremony deeply moving, it provides a teachable moment for our children.

Most importantly, let us respect the memory of those who came before us.

***UPDATE: Friday afternoon***
PMFA just received the email bellow from Matt Mazzone of Mazzone Hardware.
"Just saw your article regarding the monument – I can’t express in words how troubling it is that someone could do something with so little regard for what that monument stands for.

I immediately sent over one of our staff members with some “Anti – Graffiti” wipes to see if the fresh paint would easily come off. It appears most of it is/will come off with the wipes. With our Pumpkinfest fast approaching tomorrow, we are all running around a little crazy at the store today, however if the monument should need further attention we will get there as soon as possible to finish taking off the graffiti. Thank you as always for posting and keeping the community informed!"

Thanks for taking care of having the graffiti removed, Matt.  So glad to know that people care.

The photo below shows the monument after Matt's crew was able to remove the graffiti.

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