The Voice of the West Village WestView News VOLUME 17, NUMBER 4 APRIL 2021 $2.00 The End of Graffiti? By George Capsis lice Chief of Department Rodney Harri- son, speaking in front of a gaggle of police I hate graffiti and perhaps that is why West- commanders all the way down to the Police View News has done several front page ar- Athletic League to demonstrate, at last, an ticles on the subject. all-out collective war on graffiti. With the pandemic and the closing of of- But wait, this is very important—they fices we now have an ever-ready young crowd were not just going to hang cameras on that poured into Washington Square during lamp posts to catch the spray can artists the Black Lives Matter demonstrations and in the wee hours of dawn, but they were then marched down Broadway, spray cans in inviting citizens to report new spray can hand and even smashed shop windows. murals and then join with them (the po- Right here on Bleecker Street, somebody lice) to roll paint over them—and make sprayed “shit on god “ on a restaurant’s ply- them disappear. wood cover window and they did a 40-foot Yes, you got that right. You and I can nonsense “TEXAS” on the back of a build- now join with the police to not just report ing facing 7th Avenue. these visual crimes, or try vainly to find the I called DCPI, the police press office, to perpetrators who might be hunkered down see if I could discover a person in charge in Brooklyn, but to eliminate their crimes of the fight against graffiti but never found with a generous gift of paint from Home him or her (the mostly young officers Depot or your local store. who staff DCPI got to know me and my OUR POLICE ERASE CRIME: Starting Saturday, April 10th, under a new program an- The program invites us to collectively persistence but nobody ever said “I am in nounced by Police Chief of Department Rodney Harrison, the New York police will join with bury the graffiti crimes behind a block of the community to paint out graffiti. Photo by Paul Vlachos. charge”). But then on March 3rd, NYPD freshly painted gleaming enamel. All vol- Police Commissioner Dermot Shea issued Department was about to do a city-wide fiti.” Oh wow —I called and they sent me unteers will also get a t-shirt, from the a press release that the New York Police “Spring Clean Up: Combating Graf- a video press release showing the new Po- continued on page 3 The Great Race: Vaccines vs Mutants By Alec Pruchnicki, MD crease, these rates may continue to drop. strains of the virus from England, South But (and you knew there would be a Africa and, most recently, Brazil. They are It is hard to predict the future, but with “but”), these trends have certain weaknesses believed to be more infectious than the COVID it is even more difficult. There is a as indicators. There are parts of the country, original strain, and possibly more lethal. If race going on between the factors that will like Texas and Florida, where precautions these strains spread more rapidly than the improve our situation and other factors that have been relaxed and there is a potential for present vaccines neutralize them, then all can make it a lot worse, and right now it’s a worsening statistics and spread of the virus the recent positive statistics could worsen. toss-up as to which trend will win. to the relatively safe areas throughout the Since these are strains that have developed First, the good news. From the start of rest of the country. If COVID is still pres- only within the last year, there is no telling January to the end of February there was ent in these areas, not to mention among what strains will develop within the next a dramatic drop in cases of COVID in the the population of Europe and the billions six to twelve months. U.S. In March this drop leveled off for a of unvaccinated people in underdeveloped What should we do while waiting to see while but has recently started again. Even countries, it could continue to mutate and whether vaccines or mutants win this race? better, the death rate from the end of Janu- produce more virulent strains that could The most important thing is to get vaccinat- ary to March 20th has gradually, but per- overwhelm or evade the present vaccines. ed as quickly as possible with whatever vac- THEN: Dr. Alec Pruchnicki, MD, prior to sistently, decreased. If vaccination rates in- Speaking of mutants, there are various continued on page 22 COVID. Photo by Maggie Berkvist. Greek Easter Ray McGuire Village Jazz Scene We delve into what sets WestView News spent Jazz is still alive in Greenwich Greek Easter apart from time with Ray McGuire Village! other Easter celebrations. talking about his candidacy for Mayor. SEE PAGE 8 SEE PAGE 4 SEE PAGE 29 2 WestView News April 2021 www.westviewnews.org WestView WestViews Published by WestView, Inc. by and for the residents of the West Village. Correspondence, Commentary, Corrections Publisher / Executive Editor Garcia's Livable Streets seats in our neighborhood restaurants and east side of 7th Ave. at 10th Street sporting George Capsis Nice to read Frank Quinn's piece in the engage every demographic including our se- ‘you go girl’ on one side and ‘magic trick’ on Managing Editor / Art Director niors, children and adults. Look for the three the other; the West 11th Street wall of the Kim Plosia March issue of WestView News on Kathryn day launch coming late spring. former Philip Marie restaurant on Hud- Advertising Manager Garcia's run for mayor. It is a nice comple- Karen Rempel ment to Mara Gay's piece in the March 8 —Marjorie Dienstag son Street completely covered in big, ugly Advertising Designer Times in which Ms. Garcia picks up on my Charles Street Association President lettering; the nightmare that is the former Stephanie Phelan series on Livable Streets in WestView News. McDonalds building on West 3rd Street Traffic Manager Ms. Gay states, "Ms Garcia wants to cre- Christine McLaughlin and 6th Avenue; the former GNC location Liza Whiting ate "green belts," expanding tree canopies, on the west side of 6th Ave. at Carmine Street, an unsightly mess! And the list Photo Editor getting waste spewing trucks off the road Darielle Smolian and making sidewalks safer, healthier, more goes on. But what really hit me was walk- Photographers relaxing places to spend time." I couldn't ing west on Bleecker towards 7th Ave. and Maggie Berkvist, have said it better. seeing the newest graffiti installation above Chris Manis, Bob Cooley —Barry Benepe the 5 Guys restaurant at 7th and Barrow. Associate Editors Ugly and overbearing! Justin Matthews, Anne Olshansky Magnificent Bouboulina I have called the West Village home for Comptroller While reading Anastasia Kaliabakos’ ar- nearly 30 years, and we West Villagers have Jolanta Meckauskaite ticle “Celebrating the Bicentennial of the had to put up with our fair share of non- Architecture Editor sense by some bad actors outside of this Brian Pape Greek War of Independence,” I caught myself wanting to be Greek. community. Graffiti taggers scarring up Business Editor Thank you, Ms. Kaliabakos, for yet an- our neighborhood are among this group, Caroline Benveniste other fascinating article. and some are even bold enough to sign Fashion Director Those of us who did not go to Greek their work. A lot of these creations were Karilyn Prisco school often first started learning some- clearly not painted in five minutes; it took Music and Eldercare Editor thing about Greece from survey courses in time. Why is nobody catching them in the Hannah Reimann act? They are hurting our neighborhood. English Lit that included a chapter about Photo by Callie Chardonnay. Science and LGBTQ Editor Lord Byron, one of the "Freedom fighters Where is the 6th precinct? Where is the Kambiz Shekdar, PhD who changed the Course of History.” This Christine McLaughlin, a Villager, died this leadership from our mayor? Regular Contributors article, however, was the first I had ever March of cardiac arrest. Christine was born The proliferation of graffiti is a quality J. Taylor Basker, Barry Benepe, heard of the magnificent Bouboulina. in New York City and spent her whole life of life issue that needs to be addressed im- Caroline Benveniste, Mark. M. Green, Might I suggest that one of the many here. She and her late husband, Harvey mediately by our elected representatives. Robert Heide, Anastasia Kaliabakos, statues of Byron—himself arguably a mi- McLaughlin, worked at and managed some I’m happy to report that I sent an email Bob Kroll, Thomas Lamia, sogynist—be pulled down, and replaced by of the legendary clubs on Bleecker Street directly to Council Speaker Corey Johnson Kieran Loughney, Keith Michael, and received a phone call right away from Michael D. Minichiello, Penny Mintz, one of Bouboulina? in the 1970s and 1980s, among them The Brian J. Pape, Anthony Paradiso, At this point, I very much doubt that Bitter End and The Other End. Christine a member of his staff, who agreed with my Roger Paradiso, Bruce Poli, Lord Byron or even his heirs would mind. eventually became active in local politics concerns and promised to relay them to Alec Pruchnicki, Christina Raccuia, —John F. Early and worked for many years in the Office of the 6th precinct to see what they can do to Hannah Reimann, Karen Rempel, the City Council for New York City, serv- try and stop these violators in the act.