Bonteheuwel has followed the example of Manenberg by painting over gang graffiti or “tjappies,” as it’s known.
Residents of Hanover Park did the same thing as part of the 67 Minutes for Madiba earlier this year.
Locals just grabbed buckets of paint and covered the gang tjappies on the outside walls of shops and houses.
Usually, these are spray painted by gangs wanting to show off their territories to rival gangs.
Removing it is, therefore, an important part of fighting gangsterism that I have tried to address in various ways before.
So I want to take a moment to explain the theory behind why this is such an important part of cleaning up our communities.
It forms part of what is known as the “Broken Windows Theory,” which I would encourage you to read up about.
In a nutshell, visible signs of crime and anti-social behaviour, like broken windows, litter and graffiti, eventually leads to serious crime and disorder.
The psychology behind it for criminals is that it’s easier to commit crimes in a place which is already run down.
The theory encourages communities to fix and clean up these things as quickly as possible to avoid a further downward spiral in crime.
Much of the Cape Flats is already crime-infested, so you may wonder how this can help.
Well, it helps by creating a sense of normalcy and order in the community.
And it takes away ownership of the community from the gangs.
So, yes, gangsters may simply spray the wall again soon afterwards. But I would argue that the community should simply paint over it again and again; as often as is necessary.
Maybe even get some kids to help.
A pleasant kiddies’ drawing takes away quite a bit from the angry, macho gang sign.
Also, the City has a dedicated unit that comes out to paint over gang spray painting, so sit on your ward councillors about that.