Graffiti, Space & Safety : Exploring El Salvadoran Youth’s Conceptions and Feelings of Safety Through Participatory Documentary

Sammanfattning: This project investigates how youth in San Salvador, El Salvador define and participate in the co-creation of safety in their neighborhoods. For many years, El Salvador topped the rankings of most dangerous countries because of street gang violence and homicides. As the homicide rates have fallen in recent years, due to mass incarceration of street gang members, trust in state authority to effectively participate in the co-creation of safety has empowered young Salvadorans to also participate in that co-creation through reclaiming space. By painting over gang graffiti, the youth are participating in discourse in a public sphere, making claims to safety in their communities. Feelings and understanding of safety are also influenced by the representation and reputation of a place, thus this project included the creation of a participatory documentary for the youth to be a part of the representation of their country and communities. The documentary shows the painting over of gang graffiti and includes participant responses to questions about safety and representation. The video along with the interview responses show that the youth’s feelings of safety are tied to their physical environment, including the presence of gang graffiti, and that they are eager for their country to overcome the historical representation of being a dangerous place.