Second in ubiquity only to Spy Kid Two tags, Trump 2020 graffiti has sprung up along the bike trails across the Pioneer Valley. The pro-Trump graffiti on Norwottuck Rail Trail in particular has sparked a conversation throughout the area.
With the Pioneer Valley being a leftist spot in a relatively rural and conservative area, people responded to the graffiti in creative and unexpected ways. This has sparked a back and forth along the bridge that has become an outdoor art exhibit for all cyclists passing by.
After the first stencil marks appeared in early September, people began quickly trying to erase the messages with whatever tool they had on them.
The messages written in response to the Trump graffiti take on a variety of forms. Some people marked Xs over the stencils in chalk. Others keyed out the messages of the pro-Trump graffiti, scratching over the flags and silhouettes. Some wrote messages in marker over the original graffiti.
One of the most creative responses written in rainbow marker states, “My grandpa killed fascists.” Some messages read “fuck off,” “eat shit” and “nope.” More playful messages include “Toilet Party” and the misspelled “Tump Penis.”
One message has a simple thin scribble in pen next to the stenciled tags reading “Biden Harris 2020.”
The pro-Trump artists have responded with messages of their own. On top of a spray-painted “fuck fascism,” a person has covered the letters and painted even more Trump flags. On top of a stencil that reads the less political “Sword Dyke,” the Trump artist has painted more flags completely covering the piece.
Political graffiti has been around since the 1920s on New York train cars. It was especially influential in Hip Hop culture in the 1980s and 1990s. Now graffiti is commonplace in many public areas. The work is done by anonymous artists and is usually interpreted as ‘the voice of the people.’
Graffiti is not a new art form around the Valley’s bike trails. One can find all kinds of political graffiti, indecipherable letters and art on many concrete slabs, bridges, underpasses or pavements on the extensive bike networks in the Valley. One example includes a caricature of Bernie Sanders on the New South Street underpass on the Manhan Rail Trail.
With Trump rallies and marches taking place almost every weekend in Hadley along Route 9 by the interstate, Hampshire Mall or in the Connecticut River on boats and on the bridge itself, it is not surprising that Pro-Trump graffiti has been left behind in the aftermath of the gatherings.
People often assume that Massachusetts is solely a blue state, with the political election maps attesting to that reality every election year. The graffiti on this bridge and the Trump rallies shine light on the fact that the Valley, and more broadly, western Massachusetts, has a lot more going on politically than one might guess. Battling graffiti may not promote constructive dialogue of opposing policies and ideology, but it provides an opportunity for any person in the area to register their opinion. While it is clear that the provocative Trump graffiti was placed along the path to be alarming to the liberal residents of Northampton, it shows onlookers that we are not living in the leftist echo chamber we might think we are. Northampton and the Five Colleges are in a rural part of the state. While the political views of the residents of the neighboring towns are often ignored, our neighbors are part of the community nonetheless.
