It was all hands on deck along Wycoff Ave in Bushwick Saturday.

It was just one of several locations where the NYPD kicked off its “Graffiti Clean-Up Campaign” Saturday.


What You Need To Know

  • The NYPD kicked off its 'Graffiti Clean-up' campaign Saturday

  • The department launched the initiative to cleanup eyesores and build relationships in the community

  • The NYPD received more than 6,000 complaints of graffiti in 2020

  • To report an area that needs to be cleaned you can email Graffiti@nypd.org

Members of the NYPD and community volunteers took their rollers and painted over eyesores of graffiti. Every precinct in the city is part of the effort.

The NYPD received more than 6,000 complaints of graffiti in 2020 and they are hoping this effort can bring some positivity and beauty to these spaces that need to be cleaned up.

“This is not a problem that can't be defeated, it's something pretty simple. We just gotta get to it, put our mind to it, roll up our sleeves, work with the community and the businesses and we'll get it back where we need it to be,” Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said.

Local businesses donated the supplies and so did companies including Sherwin Williams, Starbucks and Panasonic. But besides just sprucing up neighborhoods the initiative has a greater purpose — to build relationships between the police and the community.

“When you have relationships and they have difficult times what do you do, you give back, you rebuild you speak, you work together,” Chief of Community Affairs, Jeffrey Maddrey said. “You do things that make a positive impact and that’s how you usually rebuild relationships. You know we have a lot of great relationships out here, some that are strong, some that are not as strong, but every day we're looking to build those relationships. We want them to all be strong.”

The tips received will be assessed by the NYPD and community leaders and any offensive symbols or slogans will take priority for removal.

To track progress of areas that are being treated you can head to the NYPD Community Graffiti Cleanup’s interactive map to see before and after pictures.

To report an area that needs to be cleaned you can email Graffiti@nypd.org.