The cities of Chicago and San Francisco are threatening to fine computer giant IBM for spray painted peace symbols, hearts, and penguins it commissioned to promote its Linux-based operating system removed from sidewalks.
City authorities estimated that 100 images were painted for the “Peace, Love, And Linux” campaign on Chicago sidewalks after arresting 20-year-old Ali Morsy April 18 on misdemeanor charges of criminal damage to property, vandalism, and possession of spray for in connection with those spray-painted images.
Morsy told Chicago police that he had been hired to spray paint local sidewalks by Ch’rewd Marketing and Promotion, a North Loop urban street marketing firm, Police Department spokeswoman Patrice Harper said Monday. Ch’rewd management referred all calls on the matter to the firm’s attorney Dan Colleton of the Abramson & Fox law firm, who did not return any phone calls. A spokesman for Armonk, NY-based IBM said the company has halted the campaign and will remove the artwork. IBM officials maintained two weeks ago that artwork for the campaign was supposed to be executed with biodegradable but contractors used graffiti art techniques. Chicago Streets and Sanitation Department spokesman Ray Padvoiskis said city will charge IBM for any public spending on removing the artwork but is awaiting further discussions with the computer company to determine if and how much the city would fine it.
“It’s a combined three-stencil image, and we’re considering each [combined] image a single instance,” Padvoiskis said. So far, the city has documented painting for the IBM campaign primarily in Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Wicker Park, and some in Hyde Park. “We consider it graffiti [as in vandalism], no matter what you want to call it, and we’re going directly to IBM and let them deal with their contractors. Our people are talking to IBM’s people, and we’re not going to do anything [in terms of fines] before we discuss anything thoroughly. To IBM’s credit, they did cease and desist as soon as it was brought to their attention.”
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Harper said Morsy was apprehended in the North Loop’s River North area with spray paint and stencils for the IBM campaign images in the 2300 block of North Clark Street. According to the police report, Morsy acknowledged painting similar images at other sites around the city. Morsy’s court date on the related misdemeanor charges is scheduled for May 15 at Cook County First District Municipal Criminal Court Branch 29 (2452 W. Belmont Ave.).
Chicago would bill IBM $67 per half hour, which is an estimated time for removing the spray-painted images from each site. Fines could range from $10 to $200 for each Chicago site, Padvoiskis said. San Francisco Department of Public Works spokeswoman Christine Falvey said IBM faces fines up to $500, billing for city removal of the artwork, and a misdemeanor charge of painting graffiti on city property because the company’s contractors failed to remove some of the campaign images in five neighborhoods.
Linux is a computer operating system designed to allow any programmer to determine how it works.
