Graffiti

Today I walked with Heidi and Jessi to a street that was covered with graffiti on all the cement walls surrounding it. There is a lot of graffiti here, but most of it is more names, tags and lines that don`t mean anything. Unfortunately, people paint on anything and everything: doorways, walls of houses and windows. It is everywhere and it is really not appealing. In the city there are more pictures like the ones I took here, but they are not as detailed or artistic. In my class at the Instituto we have had several discussions about graffiti and whether we think it is an expression and freedom of speech, or just ugly and annoying.
I feel like this kind of graffiti is a more appropriate way of expressing freedom of speech and trying to convey a message. It also seems that these walls were painted with permisson and artistic talent. I included some of my favorite paintings, and there are more that aren`t as beautiful or well done, but they are somebody`s idea of art and I can respect that.
What was most interesting about these walls of graffiti, is that many of the paintings were painted to send a message about women`s rights. This next piece says, "First, we destroy sexism to create a world free of violence. Respect and Equality."
I found this to be one of the most powerful messages of all the paintings. I really like the images too, of the mother and child on the left and the Mexican woman on the right who seems to be sending the message. It`s hard to tell from these photos, but all these images were done with spray paint. Even the little girl inside the heart, who even in person seems to be a picture pasted on the wall, but when I got close I could tell it was spray paint.
It was one of the most political things I`ve seen in the city so far, especially from the woman`s point of view. I`m glad that I got to see this graffiti and take pictures. It was definately an impowering moment to share the same opinions of the women of this country who are often silenced and treated inequally by society even more than in our country. It is interesting to think about the success and progress our country feels by having elected an African American president, but globally, how far have we really come?